Cyber threats are real. Contrary to what some business owners and startup founders may believe, small businesses are being attacked by hackers. In fact, these businesses are more vulnerable to a hacking attempt or backdoor attack, because they don’t spend or do much about cybersecurity.
Experts of the security community agree that businesses have to take proactive steps, instead of waiting to take corrective measures in case of a hack or breach. To keep a check on threats and security concerns, it is important to involve the security community. The best step for that is to use ethical hackers.
Knowing ethical hacking
As the name suggests, ethical hacking is about intentionally hacking into networked devices, computers, servers, networks, and IT frameworks, with the intention of finding security vulnerabilities, bugs and flaws. Ethical hackers work with companies, including small businesses, to ensure better cybersecurity, and they do that with permission. There are also hackers, so may find a flaw and report that to a company, expecting a reward. Most big companies are running bug bounty programs, which allow ethical hackers to make money by finding possible flaws. Running a program like that doesn’t have to be expensive, and there are companies that can help you run one, in case your small business doesn’t have the expertise.
The relevance for small businesses
Here are some solid reasons why ethical hackers and their services matter for small businesses –
- Because more businesses are migrating to cloud. The complex IT environments may have cost benefits, but hackers often exploit the loopholes.
- Because being critical is hard. You may believe you have taken enough security measures, and it can be tough to find issues. With ethical hackers, you can have an unbiased review of your cybersecurity plan.
- Because big companies are doing it. As we mentioned earlier, almost all big brands, including Google and Facebook, have their bug bounty programs, and small businesses cannot afford to stay behind.
- Because you must find about backdoors. Backdoors used by hackers are often hard to detect, and for that, ethical hacking and help from security community always helps, especially for malware infections.
- Because threats are evolving. Just because you are compliant to rules and regulations doesn’t mean that your company is same. Cyber threats are evolving, and businesses have to be a step ahead.
Check online now to find more on ethical hackers and ways to engage them for your company.