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7 Cybersecurity Terms You Should Know

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Cybercrime is one of the biggest risks to businesses today. In fact, according to Cyber Security Ventures, damage related to cybercrime is projected to hit $6 trillion annually by 2021. The first step to keeping your company protected from cyber risks is by familiarizing yourself with cybersecurity terms and how they can affect your business.

7 Cybersecurity Terms You Should Know

1. Encryption: Scrambling classified, important information so that only people with special keys can read it.

  • Why it’s important to know: Using encryption methods when sending emails, texts, or other important messages can protect your business from damage should your data be lost or stolen.

2. Malware: A type of software program or file that can disrupt or damage your system with unauthorized access.

  • Why it’s important to know: When your computers are infected with malware, it can cause your operations to be interrupted, and information to be stolen.

3. Ransomware: Another type of software program or file that can disrupt or damage your system restricting access to personal and confidential files until a ransom is paid. 

  • Why it’s important to know: This cyberattack can cause your business hundreds of thousands of dollars and cause your customers to lose trust in your business.

4. DDoS Attack: DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) is an attack that renders a network unavailable by overwhelming a targeted machine with massive requests from various devices. 

  • Why it’s important: Your bandwidth will be clogged and your operations may become halted for a lengthy period of time. 

5. Phishing: A technique used by hackers to obtain sensitive information by using emails to trick people into giving confidential information.

  • Why it’s important to know: Phishing schemes are a classic trick used by many hackers to try and get your employees to give confidential information. Be sure to train your employees to be able to identify these emails. 

6. Insider Threat: A threat that is either malicious or unintentional that begins within an organization.

  • Why it’s important to know: Insider threats are difficult to both identify and stop. Most of the time these types of threats come from your own employees.

7. Firewall: A defensive technology that is either hardware or software-based that helps keep hackers out.

  • Why it’s important to know: Keeping your software and hardware protected is important to keeping hackers from financially hurting your business.

When it comes to protecting your business against cyberattacks, the more you know, the better off you are. Remember, it’s easier to prevent cyberattacks from happening than it is to clean up the mess they cause. 
Need help with cyber liability coverage? We’d love to help! Get in touch with us here or call us at 770-637-1726.

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