Keeping Your Business Safe Online

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Hi, this is a short message from Wide Tech about keeping your business safe online. It takes just a few minutes and it could save you a lot of trouble.

Most business owners we talk to have the same thought. Who would bother hacking us? We're not a bank. But the truth is, most attacks aren't aimed at anyone in particular. Criminals send out thousands of fake emails and they scan the internet for weak spots. Whoever opens the door gets hit. And small and medium businesses are often the easiest door because they have real money moving through them and fewer protections in place.

The good news, most attacks can be stopped with a handful of simple habits and the right setup. So let's talk in plain English about how attacks actually happen and what you can do about them.

What is cybersecurity?

So what is cybersecurity? Think about how you protect your store, your office. At night you lock the doors, you turn on the alarm, you keep the cash in a safe, and you only give keys to people you trust. You also teach your staff not to let a stranger into the back room just because he says he's from the gas company. Cybersecurity is the same idea for the computer side of your business. It means protecting your computers, your network, your email, your files, and your payment systems from criminals who want to steal from you, lock you out of your own systems, or pretend to be you to fool your customers and suppliers.

And just like a physical store, it takes two things. Good locks, meaning the right equipment and settings, and careful people, meaning staff who know what a scam looks like. The best lock in the world doesn't help if someone hands the key to a stranger. And online, that key is usually a password.

A few words you'll hear a lot

Let me explain a few words you'll hear a lot. Phishing is a fake email or text message designed to trick you into clicking a link, opening a file, or giving away a password. Think of it as a con artist at the door, but by email. Malware is any harmful software that sneaks onto a computer, often hidden in an email attachment or a fake download. Ransomware is a kind of malware that locks up all your files and demands money to unlock them. It's basically kidnapping your data. Two-step login, sometimes called MFA, means that after you type your password, you also confirm on your phone with a code or a tap. It's like needing both a key and an alarm code. A thief who only has your password still can't get in. Updates or patches are fixes from the software maker that close holes criminals already know about. Skipping them is like leaving a broken window unrepaired. And a firewall is like a security guard for your network. It decides what's allowed in and what's allowed out.

The six most common attacks

Now, how do attacks actually happen? Here are the six most common ways.

The first is phishing email. A phishing email pretends to come from someone you trust, your bank, Microsoft, a delivery company, or even a customer. It asks you to click a link, open an attachment, or confirm your login. The page it takes you to looks real, but anything you type goes straight to the criminal. For example, an office manager gets an email saying, your mailbox is full. Sign in to keep receiving messages. She signs in on a page that looks exactly like her usual email login. And within the hour, someone else is reading the company's email.

The second is fake invoices and payment redirects. This is one of the most expensive scams for businesses. Once a criminal gets into an email account, either yours or a supplier's, they quietly watch the conversation. When a real payment is coming up, they send a message from the real account or from an address that's off by just one letter, saying the bank details have changed. The money goes to the criminal. And by the time anyone notices, it's often gone. Picture this. A long-time supplier emails you, please note our new bank account for this invoice. The email thread, the signature, and the invoice all look completely normal. The only thing that changed is the account number.

The third is ransomware. Ransomware locks up your files and systems and demands payment, usually in cryptocurrency, to unlock them. It usually gets in through a phishing email, a stolen password, or an outdated system. Many attackers also copy your data first and threaten to publish it. A business without good backups can be shut down for days or even longer.

The fourth is weak or reused password. When a website you once signed up for gets hacked, the emails and passwords from it end up on lists that criminals share. If you use that same password for your business email or your bank, they'll try it there too. In short, simple passwords can be guessed by computer programs very quickly.

The fifth is software that isn't updated. Updates aren't just new features. Many of them fix security holes that criminals already know about. A computer, an internet router, or a server that hasn't been updated in months is an open invitation. And criminals use programs that search the internet for exactly these devices.

And the sixth is unsecured Wi-Fi and POS system. If your customers, your guests, and your cash registers all share the same Wi-Fi network, a problem on one device can spread to all the others. Your POS system, that's your cash register and card payment system, handles your customer's card details. So it needs its own separate, protected network with strong passwords and current updates. Here's an example. A store gives out its Wi-Fi password to anyone who asks. That same network carries the card terminals and the office computer with the bookkeeping files. Now, one infected phone or laptop on that network has a path to all of them.

If your email gets hacked

So what should you do if your email gets hacked? The signs might be contacts telling you they got strange emails from you, messages in your sent folder that you didn't write, missing emails, or login alerts you don't recognize. If that happens, act quickly. First, change your password right away from a computer or phone you know is safe and make it a brand new password you've never used before. Next, turn on two-step login and in your account settings, sign out of all other devices so the criminal gets kicked out. Then, check for hidden rules and forwarding. Criminals often set up a hidden setting that sends them a copy of all your mail or hides certain replies from you. Delete anything you didn't create yourself. If any payment may have gone to the wrong place, call your bank immediately. The faster the bank knows, the better the chance of stopping or getting back the money. Warn your clients and suppliers by phone if you can, that they may get fake emails or payment requests from your address. Change the password on any other account that used the same or a similar password. Have your computers checked for malware so the criminal can't simply steal your new password too. And finally, call your IT provider to find out what was accessed and to close the door properly. You can also report fraud to the FBI at ic3.gov.

A simple checklist

Now, here's a simple checklist to keep your business protected. Turn on two-step login for your email, your banking, and every system that offers it. This one step stops most attacks that use a stolen password. Keep everything updated, your computers, phones, routers, firewalls, and POS systems. Turn on automatic updates wherever you can. Back up your data with the 3-2-1 rule. That means three copies of your data on two different types of storage, with one copy offsite or in the cloud, and test that you can actually restore it. Use business-grade email filtering that catches fake emails, fake invoices, and dangerous attachments before they ever reach your inbox. Train your staff to spot suspicious emails and make it easy and normal for them to ask, is this real? before clicking. Separate your network, a guest Wi-Fi for visitors and your POS and office computers on their own protected network. Verify every payment change by phone using a number you already have on file, never a number from the email itself. And use strong, unique passwords kept in a password manager so one leak doesn't open every door.

How Wide Tech can help

So, how can Wide Tech help? At Wide Tech, we help small and medium businesses run on technology they can rely on and we keep it protected. We handle the technical side so you can focus on your business. We offer managed IT where we look after your computers, servers, and staff accounts day-to-day, including all the updates. We set up network security with firewalls, secure Wi-Fi, and separate networks for guests, your registers, and your office. We monitor your systems so problems get caught early before they turn into downtime. We set up automatic, tested backups so you can recover quickly if something goes wrong. We protect your email and set up two-step login to stop phishing and account takeovers, and we install, secure, and support your POS and phone systems, all with the same team.

Not sure how protected your business is? Contact Wide Tech for a security checkup. We'll review your setup and show you exactly where you stand. You can call us at 718-637-3911 or email us at support@widetechit.com. You can also visit our website at widetechit.com. Again, that's 718-637-3911.

Thanks for listening and stay safe out there.