Thursday 23 May 2019
What Are the Top Enterprise Security Challenges Faced by Small Businesses?
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| Source: corebt.com |
Life in the 21st century has taught us that technology is
irrevocably enmeshed with our lives. No matter what we do, chances are good
that technology of some sort will be involved. If it’s not a smartphone,
computer, or another ‘smart’ device that’s pretty much all tech, it’s something
that makes use of it, even if it’s only minimal. That’s just life nowadays: an
evolving society that relies more and more on technology as it improves and
takes over an increasing amount of aspects in our lives.
Well, the same is true for businesses, both large and small.
Actually, it’s even more true for businesses because staying afloat in our
technology-driven society means leveraging the latest and greatest developments
to stay ahead of the competition. As it happens to be, these developments are
all centered around technology and how it can be used to propel business
strategies and meet quotas.
The problem comes when you realize that this increased
reliance on technology also means increased business security risks from people who are more
than glad to use a business’ very own technology against them. As to the how,
that is exactly what we’re going to cover today. From possible leaks with IoT
connected devices, to vulnerable business data, here are the top enterprise security challenges
faced by small businesses.
Internet of Things (IoT) Breaches
In case you’re unaware as to what the Internet of Things
(IoT) is, here’s an online definition:
The Internet
of things is the extension of Internet connectivity into physical devices and
everyday objects. Embedded with electronics, Internet connectivity, and other
forms of hardware, these devices can communicate and interact with others over
the Internet, and they can be remotely monitored and controlled
In other words, the IoT is a collection of programs and
devices that can connect to the Internet and to each other in a network of
connectivity with machine-to-machine communication that includes humans in the
mix. From both a business and consumer perspective, this is absolutely
wonderful… to a certain extent. Yes, we may gain ‘smart houses’ and other
gadgets that automate the home, and they gain troves of customer data and
machines whose real-time communication with each other simplifies processes,
but all of us also open ourselves to an increased risk of cybersecurity threats.
For example,
think of a hallway doors that are locked to the outside world. As long as every
single lock holds, every other door is safe. But, were one to break, every
other door would be compromised. Now transfer this analogy to the IoT. With it,
you could have dozens of devices in a single network with varying levels of
security, and if someone with nefarious purposes were to gain access to one,
they could gain access to all.
Increased Reliance on Algorithms
Like the IoT that has greatly improved many lives, the use
of algorithms in business has also greatly improved how they function. After
all, what is an algorithm but a set of rules that come together to solve a
problem? Unfortunately, also like the IoT, just because something can improve
our lives does not mean that it can’t hurt us as well. In the case of small
businesses, this comes as an increased reliance on algorithms that overlooks
what they do and how.
For instance, as a business becomes increasingly reliant on
algorithms to operate properly, it may lose sight into the actual functioning
and interactions of its systems that are all controlled by said algorithms.
That is to say, as their confidence in the algorithms increase, ther vigilance
starts slacking. For many businesses this may seem a negligent issue that can
be overlooked, but considering what happened to the U.S. Treasury Bonds “flash crash” of October 2014 before the
algorithms behind it corrected themselves, it most certainly should not.
Vulnerable Customer Data
Even
though we mainly hear about customer data breaches as they pertain to large enterprises, small businesses are just
as vulnerable to them, and perhaps even more. Sure, an enterprise that makes
millions or billions in revenue, and has just as much information on its users
may seem as the more likelier target, but would it be the easiest? No, it would
not. That would be a small business that doesn’t expect to be breached and has
a vastly inferior security system in place.
Final Thoughts
Regardless of its size and industry, being part of a business today means opening yourself up to security challenges you wouldn't have faced otherwise. If you’re part of a large business, you probably have teams making sure everything is working as it should and nothing untoward happens. If, on the other hand, you’re part of a small business, you need to be more vigilant and guard yourself against any possible risk coming your way.
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