Resource Center - White Paper

SUMMARY

Small and medium-sized businesses use the Internet and networked applications to reach new customers and serve their existing ones more effectively. At the same time, new security threats and legislation have put increased pressure on business networks to be reliable and secure. TechSoft Systems delivers comprehensive, affordable, integrated security solutions tailored for small and medium-sized businesses that help ensure business continuity, maintain customer privacy, and reduce operating costs. Companies can confidently spend more time growing their business, and less time focusing on network security issues.

BUSINESS CHALLENGES

Today's globally competitive marketplace has small and medium-sized businesses focused on expanding their organizations and improving customer satisfaction while controlling costs. Fortunately, the Internet and networked applications have created a more equitable competitive environment. Small and medium-sized businesses use their networks to extend their market reach and communicate with their customers and partners quickly and cost-effectively. But along with a swift and agile e-business, access can also open up businesses to costly security breaches. It is more important than ever to have a reliable, secure, and available network. It is equally important that the network be flexible and scalable to accommodate both future bandwidth needs and advanced services such as wireless or converged voice and data applications.

SECURITY ISSUES

According to recent studies, security is the biggest challenge facing small and medium-sized businesses. Ever-changing security threats from both inside and outside the business network can severely impair business operations, affecting profitability and customer satisfaction. In addition, small and medium-sized businesses must comply with new regulations and laws created to protect consumer privacy and secure electronic information.

Security Issue No. 1: Worms and Viruses

Computer worms and viruses remain the most common security threat, with 75 percent of small and medium-sized businesses affected by at least one virus in the last year¹. Worms and viruses can have a devastating effect on business continuity and profitability. Smarter, more destructive strains are spreading faster than ever, infecting entire offices in seconds. Cleaning the infected computers takes much longer, and the process often results in lost orders, corrupted databases, and angry customers. As businesses struggle to update their computers with the latest operating system patches and antivirus software, new viruses can penetrate their defenses at any time. Meanwhile, employees spread viruses and spyware by unwittingly accessing malicious Websites, downloading untrustworthy material, or opening e-mail attachments. These attacks are unintentionally invited into the organization, but can still cause significant financial losses. Security systems must detect and repel worms, viruses, and spyware at all points in the network.

Security Issue No. 2: Information Theft

Information theft is lucrative. Hackers break into business networks to steal credit card or social security numbers for profit. Small and medium-sized businesses are seen as an easier target than large corporations. Protecting the perimeter of the network is a good start, but it is not enough, since many information thefts are assisted by a trusted insider, such as an employee or contractor.

Information theft can be costly to small and medium-sized businesses, since they rely on satisfied customers and a good reputation to help grow their business. Businesses that do not adequately protect their information could face negative publicity, government fines, or even lawsuits. For example, new consumer laws enacted in California require any business that suspects customer information has been viewed by unauthorized people must notify all their customers. Any security strategy must prevent theft of sensitive electronic information from both inside and outside the business.

Security Issue No. 3: Business Availability

Computer worms and viruses are not the only threat to business availability. Denial-of-service (DoS) attacks can shut down Websites and e-commerce operations by sending large volumes of traffic to a critical network element and causing it to fail or to be unable to process legitimate traffic. Once again, the results are disastrous: data and orders are lost and customer requests are not answered. If these attacks become public, a company's credibility is damaged. While most of the publicity surrounding DoS outages has focused on major banks and global 500 companies, small and medium-sized businesses are not immune. They are viewed as less prepared for attacks than large corporations.

Many less dramatic but more likely attacks also threaten business availability. For example, a resource theft attack breaches business computers and networks, using them for illegal file sharing of music, movies, or software. Often, businesses are unaware that a security breach is underway. Meanwhile, their computers and networks are slow to respond to customers, and their unwitting participation in illegal file sharing leaves them vulnerable to lawsuits.

Security Issue No. 4: The Unknown

With every advance in computing and communications comes new ways to exploit that technology for gain or mischief. New hardware or software releases present such opportunities. When peer-to-peer networking and instant messaging were still relatively new applications, for example, their users were attacked by malicious code written specifically for them. Now, mobile phones are frequent targets of viruses. Without the ability to predict what is coming next, the best defense is one that can easily adapt to future threats, and that is affordable.

Security Issue No. 5: Security Legislation

Aside from these security threats, new laws and regulations require that small and medium-sized businesses protect the privacy and integrity of the information entrusted to them. In the European Union, for example, the EU Data Protection Act governs the protection of personal data in the hands of organizations. Nearly every industry has an example of legislation that regulates businesses and requires additional security measures. In the United States, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requires healthcare organizations, including every doctor's office, to put safeguards in place to ensure the privacy of health information and prevent unauthorized access.

The onus is on businesses to comply with laws and regulations that apply to their business in their markets. Customers want assurance that their information will be kept private. All businesses must take steps to secure their business infrastructure, but with their limited budgets, small and medium-sized businesses, in particular, require simple, right-sized, affordable solutions. TechSoft Systems can assist our clients to develop a comprehensive security system to make sure you are protected. Contact us for a Free IT Assessment just click here.