Hacks are an everyday threat within our constantly increasing dependence on the digital world. While hacking has gained a Hollywood-like reputation due to movies, video games, and other works of fiction, hacking is a viable threat that you and your business must prepare for and have a plan in place if you fall victim to an unfortunate hacking.
Let’s take a look into the world of hacking. Along the way, we’ll share a few of our IT expert-approved tips for recovering from a business hack and moving on with your company.
2020 Shocking Hacking Statistics
In a 2020 report, 52% of data breaches were found to be the result of hacking. The most considerable risk being phishing, which accounted for 33% of those data breaches. 70% of these breaches were motivated by financial gain, and others involved exploiting the vulnerabilities within web applications. With most of the world working remotely throughout the pandemic, this is more than double the statistics from 2019.
So, You Have Been Hacked. What Happened?
The first step that needs to be taken when trying to recover from a hack is to ask yourself “what happened?”. Accurately retracing your steps and performing a full audit of the practices or lack of attention that may have led to the hacking is the best way to set up a preventative plan, filling in the gaps within your business’s security.
5 Crucial Questions To Ask Yourself and Your Staff After A Possible Business Hack
1. What Was Compromised By The Hack?
When you ask what happened, try to take a specific look at the immediate results or damage caused by the hack. This is the best starting point to work backward, pinpointing where the breach occurred and what damage it’s causing to the digital capabilities of your business.
2. When Did The Hack Happen?
In many cases, there aren’t bright and loud telltale signs that you have been hacked. A clever hacker can operate in stealth mode, so it’s possible that your business has been hacked for days, even months.
“Often, businesses discover that they have been breached for the first time months after it happened when they are informed by law enforcement, business partners, banks or the media — who themselves discover the businesses’ data being sold on the black market,” said David Zetoony, a partner with international law firm Bryan Cave, in a report from Business News Daily.
3. Where Did The Hack Occur?
What section of your digital business capabilities did the hack attack? Was it through your company’s email, social media, project management systems, or internet browsers? By asking this question, we can begin to understand better where the holes in your security are and how to fill them with the proper security measures.
4. What Was The Hacker’s Motivation?
Motivation is one of the most essential pieces of information that your IT department or IT consultants will need to figure out post-hacking. Hacking incentives are usually financial driven, attempting to breach and steal crucial financial information, such as bank accounts and credit card numbers. However, hackers also attempt to breach systems to steal confidential data or exploit a business’s weakness.
5. Who Did This Affect Most?
Hackers can specifically target departments or individuals within your business. You’ll want to figure out why certain aspects or people within your organization were the targets of a data breach to inform your actions moving forward. You’ll also need to notify affected customers, business partners, and vendors that may have been affected by the breach.
Recovery And Future Hack Prevention
It can be a long road to recovery post hack, but it is certainly possible and worth the efforts to restructure your cybersecurity practices. Once you have gotten your various systems under control, you can take important lessons from the hack and move forward with more robust security measures and procedures in place.
Audit And Clear All Devices
It’s critical that you scan ALL of your business’s computers, laptops, devices, and systems for breaches, malware, or other implanted malicious attacks. Even if you think you have already removed the hacker’s tools from your digital infrastructure, scan everything. Remember, hacks are sneaky, and without the proper audit, you can never be sure that the hack has been completely removed from your business.
Re-Secure Your Accounts
Once you have officially cleared your devices of all damages and security gaps, it’s time to fully secure or re-secure your business accounts, from domain hosting sites, such as WordPress to social media accounts and all other logins. This also includes third-party passwords that may have been connected to the hacked software or account. If the software was hacked, then all third-party programs/accounts connected to it will also be at risk.
Moving Forward: Implementing Stricter Cybersecurity Practices
If post-hack, you decided to go back to “business as usual,” you’re setting you, your company, and your stakeholders up for another round of costly and time-consuming cyber attacks. You must implement strict security measures and practices into places company-wide.
Outside of updating your security software and following the steps that we’ve laid out in this article, you’ll need to train yourself and your staff in the best security practices available. While this may take time, effort, and budget right now, it’s certainly better than dealing with another, potentially business-ending and reputation-destroying, hack in the near future.
Seek Professional IT Support Services
Enlisting professional IT support professionals’ aid takes much of the stress of security implementation out of your hands. IT consultants will work with you and your company to develop a plan that works best for your organization, training and guiding your staff effectively every step of the way.
At M&H Consulting, we pride ourselves on crafting and implementing the latest security software and practices into your current digital systems without having to overhaul your entire operational infrastructure. From preventive strategies to recovery plans, we’re with you every step of the way, ensuring that your business carries on in the event of an attack.
Categorised in: antispyware, antivirus, data breach, hacking, Health & Safety, malware, ransomware, spyware, Tech Tips, virus