How important is IT security?

For many companies, IT security remains a marginal topic. Small and medium-sized companies in particular neglect it. Those responsible often cite a lack of budget or overburdened IT staff as reasons. Some decision-makers are also still convinced that their own company could not be a worthwhile target for cyberattacks.

In fact, cybercriminals are also interested in SMEs. Often, the barriers to penetrating networks are lower there due to security vulnerabilities. In this article, you will learn which methods you can use to improve your IT security. We also explain why IT security is especially important for SMEs and which solutions make sense and are affordable at the same time.

Why is the topic of IT security particularly important for SMEs?

Small and medium-sized enterprises often do not have the resources or know-how to implement complete IT security. Cyber criminals are also aware of this. For this reason, these companies are increasingly becoming the focus of cyberattacks.

In the meantime, virtually every company is an interesting target for hackers. The main aim is to extort money from the intended target. Ransomware is used. The attackers use it to encrypt the data on your servers and hard drives. Such ransomware attacks are on the rise, especially in the banking sector.

So the criminals try to paralyze your entire IT infrastructure. If backups are missing, the data loss can no longer be avoided. The criminals then extort high sums and promise to release the data again in return.

The risk of falling victim to such an attack has increased enormously in recent years. Statistics clearly show that cyberattacks are on the rise. This is mainly due to the fact that attackers derive direct financial benefits from ransomware attacks.

SMEs are popular targets of such extortion. On the one hand, this is due to vulnerabilities in IT security. On the other hand, the extortions are more often successful, precisely because backups are often missing. For this reason, it is all the more important that you strive to maintain a high level of IT security.

How does comprehensive IT security look like?

An effective protective shield in IT consists of several components. Only when all of them are present and optimally implemented is a high level of your IT security achieved.

Some of the individual components can be implemented with software solutions. Other areas require employee training or are linked to manual controls. This is what makes modern IT security so complex and expensive. Comprehensive IT security consists of the following building blocks:

• Antivirus 
• Firewall 
• Anti-Ransomware 
• Patch-Management 
• Backups 
• proactive monitoring

Why do small and medium-sized enterprises in particular have problems with IT security?

Implementing optimal IT security is a challenge for every company. Larger corporations have a corresponding budget to implement the necessary points.

Large companies are also aware of the dangers posed by cyber attacks. The potential damage clearly exceeds the costs of prevention. In SMEs, this awareness is sometimes lacking.

Proactive monitoring serves as an example. Here, real-time monitoring of all activities in the network is necessary. This is done by a Security Operations Center (SOC). This is a separate department within IT. It has no other task than to monitor the network around the clock.

The personnel costs for a SOC are correspondingly high. It is of course financially impossible for small and medium-sized companies to operate a SOC. This is where the advantages of external IT service providers become apparent. They take on such tasks and provide solutions based on cloud concepts. In this way, IT security is affordable and represented at a high level.

Which IT security solutions do we offer at redIT?

We at redIT have specialized in digitalization and advise you in the area of IT security. We find the right solutions and strategies for your company. The focus is on IT security and outsourcing.

On the one hand, we offer solutions in the cloud with which you can increase your security level. On the other hand, we also find vulnerabilities in your network or help you train your employees.

Sensitize your own staff

One of the biggest vulnerabilities in IT security is the human element. The best software systems are helpless if an employee falls for the methods of cybercriminals. For this reason, it is important to train employees in the best possible way.

We offer redCLOUD Phish Threat specifically for this purpose. This service focuses on the reactions of your employees. We send realistic mails that resemble those of phishing attacks. Then we observe how your employees react to these mails.

Based on the analysis, you can see whether your employees are confident in dealing with phishing mails. Based on the findings, training is possible to eliminate the weak points. In addition, we organize a security awareness training for you. In this training, we sensitize your employees to the dangers that lurk every day.

Backup solution from redIT

The topic of data backup is neglected in many companies. Outdated methods offer only apparent security. In an emergency, you need a backup solution that you can rely on 100 percent.

Cyber criminals are now able to spy on your entire network topography before the actual attack begins. It often turns out that the attackers also identify and compromise local backup systems. Then your own backup is worthless and the loss of digital information is a reality.

We offer a redCLOUD backup as a solution. This is a data backup in the cloud. The storage takes place on our security servers in Switzerland. With this solution, your network is separated from the data backup. If hackers penetrate your company network, your backup in the redCLOUD is safe from the attackers. So even if the cybercriminals manage to encrypt your systems with ransomware, you will not suffer any data loss. You simply restore all your systems via the backup.

The redCLOUD backup has even more advantages in practice. For example, the data backup takes place fully automatically in the background. This makes administration easier for you. At the same time, you always have an up-to-date data backup.

Finding and eliminating vulnerabilities in IT

The IT infrastructure is becoming increasingly complex. Advancing digitization means that you are using more and more software and systems. This makes managing the infrastructure increasingly complicated. This increases the dangers that exist due to vulnerabilities.

We at redIT offer you an effective solution to this problem with IT vulnerability management. It starts with a complete analysis of your IT infrastructure. Here we look for existing vulnerabilities and analyze your processes. For example, we focus on patch management and password security.

If you wish, we can also carry out a security assessment. In this IT security check, we test your network for vulnerabilities under realistic conditions. We use attack methods that hackers also use in real attacks. In this way, we uncover possible points of attack.

Afterwards, we provide you with expert advice on how to improve your routines and IT security in a sensible and sustainable way. We also support you in implementing these improvements. Are you interested in individual solutions for your IT security? Then please use our contact form and we will get back to you as soon as possible.