3 Ways to Protect Your Business From External Threats

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StrategyDriven Risk Management Article |Protect Your Business|3 Ways to Protect Your Business From External ThreatsRunning a business requires you to pour your heart and soul into making it a success. When you commit so much time and energy to your business, the last thing you want is for its success to be jeopardized by an external threat. External threats to companies come in many forms, so being aware of them and what you can do to protect your company is essential.

Knowing that you are protecting your business will bring you peace of mind and allow you to focus attention on running your business. Here is how to keep your business protected:

1. Increase Business Premises Security

A break-in or theft at your building can be a distressing situation. No one wants the hassle and upset of needing to report the crime and clear up the damage caused, especially when this is likely to cost you both time and money that could be better spent elsewhere.

Increasing your physical security measures at your business can act as a helpful deterrent and prevent crimes from being committed. Increasing your number of CCTV cameras on the premises, installing shutters, and investing in an alarm system will help reduce the likelihood of crimes being committed and save you the time and hassle that this causes.

2. Take Care of Cybersecurity

While the physical security of your buildings is vital, protecting your business from cybersecurity threats is also crucial. Cybercrimes are continuing to rise, with increased numbers of hacks and phishing scams taking place. If your business is a victim of a cybercrime, the cost can be high. Data breaches and other cybercrime can cause your business unplanned downtime, damage to your reputation, and money if you receive a fine.

As cybercriminals become increasingly sophisticated in their techniques, it becomes even more essential to work on protecting your business from cyber threats. Using Managed IT Services is an excellent way to do this as it enables you to benefit from professional assistance and the latest cybersecurity knowledge to protect your company. Knowing that you have expert help just a phone call away is a fantastic way to keep your business protected from this genuine threat.

3. Legal Protection

No matter how efficiently and diligently you run your business, you cannot control issues caused by other organizations. There are many issues your company can fall victim to in its business dealings, so ensuring you have legal protection against these is crucial.

Finding an experienced lawyer with lots of experience in drawing up contracts and copyright law is vital for your business. Getting contracts drawn up between your company and your suppliers could help safeguard your business against the cost of delays caused by supplies being delivered late or being substandard. It is also helpful to ensure you have applied for the appropriate copyright and patents for your designs and ideas so that you can take action if a competitor copies these.

While external threats cannot be eliminated, taking action to minimize their risk is the best way to keep your company protected.

Why Insurance Is Vital For Your Business

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StrategyDriven Risk Management Article |Business Insurance|Why Insurance Is Vital For Your BusinessBusiness insurance is financial coverage for your business. It provides you with protection against both potential and unexpected damage. There are different types of insurance for businesses, from insurance on equipment, structure, loss of revenue, cyber insurance and many more. A business owner is exposed to various risks – from loss of equipment and information due to fire or burglary, damage to electronic equipment to possible third party claims, for example claims of injured employees or even claims filed due to professional negligence. Each business has its own unique characteristics, its specific insurance needs and of course the budget available to it. Therefore, the insurance policies must be adapted to the type of business and its activity, in order for you to receive business insurance that gives you exactly the coverage you wanted. There are different types of insurance, including tradesman insurance for example.

I own a home-based business. When do I need business insurance?

There are many freelancers, including lawyers, accountants and the like, who own and operate a small firm from within their own home. In this case, too, it is advisable to draw up an office insurance policy. If the home office is uninsured, not only is it not protected from the risks mentioned above, but the office activity may completely void the home insurance policy (if any). If a business is conducted at home, the apartment policy must be updated and it must be stated that there is a business activity happening inside it. If the business activity in the home is not updated, the insurance benefits may be affected in the event of damage or a claim.

What policies are needed?

Insurance of shops and businesses. Store insurance or any other business requires a unique and customized business insurance policy. First and foremost, the policy covers the business from fire damage and can be extended to many additional coverages as needed, such as flooding, theft and more. The common covers can be divided into three parts:

  1. Structure – can be extended to cover against natural damage and earthquake etc.
  2. Inventory and / or equipment – can be extended for protection against burglary, natural damage, damage to goods during transfer, loss of profits and more.
  3. Liability (liability insurance) – Common coverages are third party damage (spread of fire to nearby businesses or customer injury), employer liability (insurance that protects the business owner from claims by his employees), product liability, professional liability and more. In general, the field of liabilities is a relatively complex field, and it usually covers the risks that can cost a lot of money to the insured.

Professional liability insurance is intended for employees in a variety of areas of expertise, including doctors, paramedical therapists, architects, plumbers, lifeguards, beauticians and the like. This insurance provides coverage for the professional responsibility of the professional when performing his work. Thus, if the professional is sued by a client due to professional negligence, whether for bodily injury or property damage, this professional liability insurance provides financial coverage, in accordance with the limits of liability purchased in the policy including ancillary expenses. Professional liability insurance is an important business insurance because it covers the long-term professional and protects them from future claims, even those that were filed many years after the insured event occurred and it’s better to be safe than sorry!

4 Benefits of Server Monitoring: How Involved in Every Aspect of Your Business Can You Afford to Be?

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StrategyDriven Risk Management Article |Server Monitoring|4 Benefits of Server Monitoring: How Involved in Every Aspect of Your Business Can You Afford to Be?When business owners first open up their doors, either literally or proverbially, they often manage most or all aspects of the company’s operations. As the business grows, though, things get complicated fast and business owners need to be more judicious with their time. They need to focus on those functions that serve to generate the most income or require the most specialized expertise.

Unfortunately, growing businesses can’t usually afford to hire additional employees to manage other important aspects of keeping things running smoothly. It costs a lot of money to hire a full IT staff capable of performing server and network performance monitoring, but without any kind of server monitoring, growing businesses will be at an ever-increasing risk of experiencing costly network failures. Thankfully, there’s a better option. Read on to find out about four of the biggest benefits of using remote server monitoring as a means of mitigating costly risks without spending a fortune on hiring or expanding a full IT department.

1. Identify Issues Before They Come Up

It’s amazing how quickly a seemingly minor server issue can become a major headache for business owners. Using a Server Monitoring tool makes it easier to detect small problems before they become huge headaches. Remote server monitoring allows business owners to keep track of things like backups and updates and detects irregularities and server failures. Some well-designed monitoring tools can even correct common errors automatically, helping to prevent more serious issues from developing.

2. Get Advanced Warning for Hardware Upgrades

Remote server monitoring can’t eliminate 100% of network maintenance tasks from business owners’ plates. A remote monitoring tool can’t perform necessary hardware upgrades, and eventually, all hardware will need to be replaced. It will, however, offer an advanced warning to business owners so they can plan for a seamless server switchover and eliminate unplanned downtime. A remote monitoring program will let the user know when processor usage is rising to dangerous levels or hard disk space is running low, letting business owners know that it’s time for an upgrade.

3. Improved Security

One of the biggest advantages of remote server monitoring is that it improves security dramatically, especially for companies that don’t have in-house IT departments. The monitoring tool will keep track of everything happening to the system’s firewall, install security patches immediately when they come out, reduce spam relay attempts, and free up server capacity. The happy results of these steps are lower chances of being targeted by hackers looking for an easy mark and reduced downtime due to security breaches, which translates into less stress for business owners and happier customers or clients.

4. Increased Productivity

Already have an in-house IT department and am wondering if remote server monitoring is worth the investment? It is. The IT professionals already on the staff will no longer have to deal with simple fixes that could be managed remotely, nor will they be faced with crisis-level situations that arise as a result of lapses in server monitoring. The automated program will simply alert the IT staff when there’s something that needs to be dealt with in person.

The Bottom Line

Growing a business is hard, but business owners don’t need to go it alone. They can rely on effective, affordable tools like remote server monitoring programs to shoulder some of the burdens.

Developing Cybersecurity-Aware Employees To Protect Your Business

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StrategyDriven Risk Management Article |Cybersecurity|Developing Cybersecurity-Aware Employees To Protect Your BusinessWith more and more businesses adopting remote working models, there’s an increased focus on having effective cybersecurity measures in place. With employees working from their homes or other locations, the threats to businesses are increasing.

An overwhelming 90% of cyberattacks happen as a result of human error, making it even more important that your employees feel knowledgeable and confident about cybersecurity. Through training and clear guidance, you can reduce the threat of cyberattacks to your business, and strengthen your overall resilience.

Here are some suggestions for raising cybersecurity awareness amongst your employees.

Identify the threats to your business

To ensure your business is protected from cybersecurity threats, you need to understand what they are and how they could impact your business. Even small businesses are vulnerable to security threats, making it vital to put safeguards in place.

Some of the major cybersecurity threats businesses face today include malware and phishing scams and ransomware. These types of attacks can occur easily as a result of human error, and it’s important that you recognize the potential risks for your business so that appropriate measures can be taken.

Provide the right training to your employees

Cyberattacks are growing in sophistication, and if your employees don’t know what to look out for, they become a liability for your business – especially when they’re working off-site. Providing the right cybersecurity training can help employees feel more confident in identifying potential risks, and helps them understand the actions that need to be taken if they come into contact with something suspicious.

If your business has made the move to remote working, you will need to provide updated training, while also ensuring the infrastructure is in place to protect your systems.

Publish regular reminders and updates

Providing training to your employees can help equip them with better cybersecurity knowledge, but training alone won’t protect your business. You’ll need to provide regular updates and reminders to ensure your employees are aware of the latest risks, and any policies that have been updated in line with emerging threats. Making cybersecurity an ongoing topic of discussion can normalize it for your employees, helping them make more informed choices at work, and in their lives outside of work too.

Review the situation regularly

As new threats emerge regularly, your business will need an ongoing strategy for cybersecurity, including dealing with breaches and interruptions to your service. Working with an IT company with experience in managing these types of disruptions can help you benefit from round-the-clock support, knowing you’ll be up and running again in no time. Many businesses look to outsourcing their IT to maintain their service while benefiting from the expertise that can keep their business safe.

Cyberattacks have the potential to seriously damage a business, both financially and on a reputational level. With the right measures put in place to protect your business, you can feel confident knowing your business is in the best place to defend against attacks both now, and in the future.

Essential Security Systems That Protect The Business & Employees

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StrategyDriven Risk Management Article |Security Systems|Essential Security Systems That Protect The Business & EmployeesBuilding a business is a challenging job; it needs a lot of investment and not only in the process but also for infrastructure. Thus, maintaining a security system for your business is a must. This will save you from any theft or loss of business or valuable stuff.

Yes! We know that you have already invested a lot in the business setup and completing other formalities to run it. But what’s the use of investing in every step of a company’s development and growth when you can’t protect it, right? So save yourself from any regret and invest a bit in the security system because it will pay you off the investment you have made on it. Here we are sharing types of security system you need in your business:

Closed-Circuit Television

Video surveillance systems are the device that offers the ability to monitor your business from inside and outside. CCTV is not only beneficial to monitor the office but also allows you to check the operation. You can easily track staff, customers and what all is happening on the premises. Cameras even help in finding out the would-be criminal activity and even helps in prosecuting criminals. They become the best evidence when there is mishappening in your business or any theft or misconduct.

The system that detects the Fire

Yes! We are talking about fire alarms here. For any business, detecting smoke and alerts that can create a problem and mishap is very necessary, thus investing in automated fire alarms and suppression systems can prevent you from losing business. In this, you need to make sure that you get it from a reputable company that can help meet the company’s requirements and satisfy all the needed state and federal fire code standards.

Panic Button

This device is safely featured and is in high demand for many companies. Silent panic buttons for businesses are designed to create a safer place for employees. Therefore, the device for businesses has become mandatory in various organizations. It reduces the time between the start of an incident and when responders are on the scene. The key aim of this device is to notify the responders swiftly.

Access Control Systems

Welcome to the new era where you can have the access control system as the security system. This system controls the entry and exit to the office, as every person that is a member of the office will have access, and any non-invited person will not be able to get inside the office. Now this one offers massive security to the employees and other members of the office.

Wireless Sensors

This device collects sensory information and detects any sort of change in the local environment. It helps in protecting the employees and office from gases like carbon monoxide or related toxic gases. Remember, you are protecting the ones who are helping you in the growth process of your business.

Final Words

Protecting employees and businesses should be the priority of any company. As they plan to invest in the infrastructure, legal matters of the business, and employees’ hiring process, they should even invest in security systems. This will protect the employees and the entire business from any mishap.