CyberSecurity: How to Prevent Malware Attacks

From a cybersecurity standpoint, malware attacks are a dire threat to businesses and individuals alike. The best way to protect yourself from malware is to put preventive security measures to make it harder for hackers to break in. To position yourself as a challenging target for cybercriminals, you need to take a layered approach to cybersecurity. Here is where you implement different security protocols to safeguard your business from cyberattacks.

In this cybersecurity guide, we will explore security tips to strengthen your business from malware attacks.

But first, we will go through what malware is and how they affect your business.

What is Malware?

Malware is malicious software designed to cause harm to infected servers, computer networks, or user devices. Malware has been around for as long as the internet has existed. Everyone is susceptible to malware attacks as they can affect any device or website. Hence, understanding how malware works will give you a solid ground for protecting your site and web users.

The danger of malware is that it can fly under the radar without being detected via email, files, websites, and other innocuous ways. As a website owner, malware attacks can lead to sensitive information ending up in the hands of cybercriminals, which could cause irreversible damage to your business and reputation.

Hence, ensure you stay vigilant about cybersecurity practices and preventive measures for malware.

1. Keep your devices, operating systems, and internet security software updated. Cybercriminals frequently use known exploits, or flaws, in your software to gain access to your website. Patching any vulnerabilities in your plugins and browsers will also ensure you are less likely to become a malware target.
2. Follow password best practices. We cannot retaliate enough that passwords are an integral part of your cybersecurity measures. Enforce a solid password policy throughout your business. Hackers frequently utilize sophisticated software that uses brute force to crack passwords. So use strong passwords with complex characters to prevent brute force attacks and reduce the chances of hackers getting it right. You can also implement two-factor authentication, a security feature that adds a second step to the login process to prevent hacks and data breaches.
3. Use digital security certificates. Secure Sockets Layer(SSL) certificates encrypt the information users supply to your site, which safeguards against unwarranted access to information and uploading malware-infected files. SSL certificates contain high levels of encryption, HTTPS, which ensures that hackers will not have the means to infiltrate sensitive data. Plus, installing SSL certificates on your site will aid your long-term SEO goals and build consumer trust.
4. Provide cyber awareness training to stakeholders in your organization. It is not for only you to be knowledgeable with cybersecurity best practices. Keep in mind that everyone in your organization with access to work devices, networks, or databases is a target of malware attacks. Hence, carry out cyber awareness and training programs and have employees adopt best security practices.
5. Limit access to admin roles. Setting correct user roles and permissions such as Admin, Contributor, or Subscriber is critical for your site security. Only provide users with the access they need and ensure they have solid usernames and passwords. It goes a long way in preventing access to sensitive data in case certain accounts are compromised.
6. Implement email security protocols. DMARC, DKIM, and SPF are email authentication protocols to protect your business from malicious emails. Inadequately secured email accounts provide cyber attackers with a path into your business, compromising sensitive consumer data and reputation damage. Having an effective email security strategy in place is vital in keeping your business safe.
7. Incorporate Email filters. Although it might seem harmless, spam poses a risk to your email security and exposes you to malware attacks. Our email hosting plan offers free spam filtering, which is ideal for protecting your emails from threats, keeping your inbox safe from spam, viruses, and phishing attacks.

Using these cybersecurity tips will protect your business from malware attacks. However, with the evolving nature of such attacks, hackers consistently come up with new forms and twists of malware, so you need to stay vigilant.