In business, you should always cover your assets. From insuring your inventory to ensuring your employees are safe, you must always be vigilant about asset protection.
In fact, your business website is an asset you might be overlooking. However, it’s critical that you protect this valuable asset from hackers, online stalkers, and spammers. Only then can you ensure the safety of both your customers and your business.
Here are a few ways to do website protection right and stack the odds in your favor.
Protect Your Email Address
Email data is among the easiest for hackers to obtain. Minimize website security risks by keeping your company email addresses relatively protected from spam by keeping your email address private.
But how can you do this? Quite simply, don’t publish your email address on your website.
There are apps available for a small fee that crawl the internet and aggregate email addresses for their subscribers to utilize. If your email information is not on your site, it can’t be picked up by one of these apps. This helps to keep your inbox clear of spam emails and phishing attempts.
Create contact forms that will allow customers to reach you in a way that’s actually easier for them than composing an email. It will up your customer service game by adding convenience and mask your email address, keeping it free from spammers. Win-win!
Invest in an SSL Certificate
Assure your customers that you are protecting their data, including their credit card or payment information, by investing in an SSL Certificate.
SSL stands for Secure Socket Layer. This adds a layer of protection by encrypting data as it’s transmitted, rendering it useless to hackers.
Just as you are responsible for the safety of a visitor to your office or brick-and-mortar store, you are responsible for the safety of your online customer. When you neglect to protect that data, you could be held liable for harm done to your visitor by hackers.
Today’s online shoppers are savvy. They expect to see three visible signs that your website is secure before they input their payment data:
- an https:// instead of an http:// address;
- a lock symbol;
- and the word “Secure.”
If users don’t see these indicators, they will flee from your website and give their dollars to a competitor.
Therefore, investing in an SSL certificate and moving your website to an HTTPS environment ensure the security of customer data and help you to drive revenue by reassuring the consumer.
Implement Stringent Password Protocols
Create awareness amongst your employees by enforcing strict password protocols. Make internet security part of your company culture so your employees will embrace internet security as well as understand why you’re setting stringent standards.
Require all employees to:
- Create complex passwords of 15 characters and a combination of symbols, numbers and upper- and lower-case letters.
- Make random passwords that are difficult to guess instead of using their puppy’s name.
- Keep passwords confidential. Ie: Let them know they can’t share passwords with co-workers.
- Develop a good habit of logging out of browsing sessions when not in use.
- Change passwords at a predetermined frequency.
Your employees will probably grumble about these protocols in the beginning. After all, they will find it inconvenient. However, coach them through these best website security practices until they understand the magnitude of their personal contributions to company safety.
Control Access to Your Website
Aside from phishers, hackers, and other website security issues, you have another potential security breach—your employees. Unfortunately, employees can be a weak point either unwittingly or because they want to collect user data when they are about to part company with you.
Because of this, you should control access to your website.
Not all employees do the same job. Therefore, all employees don’t need the same access to company data. Segment which job roles require access to your website and other online tools. Only grant website permissions to those employees who need it to perform their jobs. In addition, monitor usage logs for suspicious activity.
Run Regular Software Updates
Be sure to perform regular software updates on all your applications and your website security software. Set automatic alerts that warn you when updates become available and spend the resources to run all updates immediately.
Here’s why.
Hackers are largely opportunistic creatures who are looking for vulnerability. Most of today’s software updates use a patch management system. When you don’t run updates, hackers use the opportunity to breach your website via the unpatched software.
Hackers Be Gone!
Your website is a great asset to your company. Unfortunately, it’s also a point of vulnerability if it’s not managed right. Making your website safer will send hackers, phishers, and spammers looking for an easier target.
Cover your assets by taking website protection seriously. Do this and you’ll be presenting a clear message to your customers, employees, and potential hackers that protecting data and ensuring online safety is a core priority with your company.
Still on HTTPS?
Hesitant of moving your web forms and website to a secure HTTPS location because something might break and you don’t want to deal with the hassle?
Spending your time and resources on the migration will be something you wished you have done if your website has been left vulnerable—and hacked.
So don’t let that happen and move to the more secure HTTPS. Here’s an easy guide.
Deborah Tayloe
Deborah is a blogger and freelancer who often writes for EmailMeForm. When she’s not blogging, you’ll probably find Deborah working on DIY projects around her home in North Carolina.
