It’s no secret that incidents of cybercrime increased greatly over the past few years. Covid restrictions, remote work, and hybrid office setting have only exacerbated this phenomenon. These crimes take on many names from ransomware to phishing. But did you know that having a sound record management plan in place can prevent some of the most common forms of cyberattacks?
In a recent study, the FBI estimates that cybercrime cost businesses in the neighborhood of $6.9 billion in 2021 alone. Although the percentage only rose by roughly 7%, that’s enough to put many smaller companies out of business for good. Even more alarming, almost ⅓ of those crimes reported were executed by attacking business email accounts.
What is Phishing?
Phishing may sound like an outdoor hobby or a popular jam band, but it’s actually a very serious crime. The term “phishing” was coined around 1996 and refers to the act of sending out fraudulent emails in “fishing” attempts to gain access to passwords or other sensitive data. Perpetrators of these attacks often send out hundreds or thousands of spoofed emails in an effort to breach even one person within an organization.
The most common type of phishing is when a criminal sends an email to an employee asking for information, or including an attachment that contains malicious code. It often appears to be official correspondence or from a superior in the organization. All it takes is one person in an organization to take the “bait” and you can see the results above. Cybersecurity firms have identified roughly 19 different types of phishing attacks, with “social engineering” types of email attack being the most common.
How Sound Record Management can Prevent Phishing
There are a number of ways to prevent these attacks, with education and routinely changing passwords being near the top of the list. But something as simple as having a concrete record management system in place can be just as effective.
Aside from enhanced password protocols and education, try to reduce the number of back and forth emails your organization sends. Emails are often forwarded or CC’s many times in the course of a conversation. This can lead to vital information being exposed to those that may not need access to that data. Additionally, it only takes one compromised account to expose that information to an outside source.
Digital files are also more secure, but that also depends on your level of compliance and regulations. The beauty of most document management systems is that the security often comes built in. IT professionals can limit who has access to files, and what they are able to do with them. For example, files may need an additional password for access, or they may be read-only. In addition to these measures, your system may prevent files from being printed altogether, further limiting the scope of exposure.
All experts agree that simply educating your staff is the first line of defense. Routinely updating your staff on procedures and best practices can prevent an attack before it begins. Reporting suspicious emails and activity to your IT department, and maintaining good password hygiene is also key. This means not reusing passwords, changing passwords regularly, and using a strong password of 15 or more characters including numbers and symbols.
Record Nations has Document Management Systems for all Businesses
While education is paramount, having the right system in place is also a vital tool. Record Nations has partnered with some of the most secure and state-of-the-art companies when it comes to record management. Whether you want to migrate all of your business files to the cloud, or you want on-site servers, we can match you with the right company to fill those needs. Start the process by filling out the form, using the live chat button, or giving us a call at (866) 385-3706.
