Data security should be among the priorities of global enterprises for 2016. Representatives of numerous corporate organizations believe cyber security is one of the major problems tormenting multinationals. It becomes a more critical issue as Internet technology continues to advance. Data being pilfered by hackers is doing businesses no good. It destroys the reputation of corporations and “affects the public’s confidence in sharing data”, according to an official of a leading cyber security firm based in the United States and United Kingdom.

Data Theft 

Data Theft is one serious concern of the international business community. Stolen information is used by unscrupulous individuals or criminal syndicates to commit identity scams on gullible customers from whom the data was filched. Pilfering of data refers to the theft of a business entity’s confidential documents or client information. These incidents have increased lately due to the proliferation of sophisticated data base servers, system administrators, digital contraptions, and mobile devices.

Identity Theft 

Identity theft is another enigma. This is the premeditated use of another person’s identity to commit financial fraud. It is scary for businesses since it only takes a single data infringement and theft of identifying information of clients to lose a business permanently. Companies entrusted with personal information of other people must intensify their efforts to deal with this matter. Identity thieves target small companies’ more than large corporations because they lack stringent policies on data security.

Credit card fraud

 Credit card fraud is something that many companies do not anticipate until it happens. Online merchants or those who sell by mail are vulnerable to this modus operandi primarily because of deceitful credit card purchases. This can also be perpetrated offline. Detecting fraudulent transactions can be implemented through proper verification of addresses and card codes as well as suspicious orders.

In 2014, the USA was shocked by the data breach that victimized giant retail corporation, Target. More than 70 million customers were victims of this data theft. Over 40 million credit and debit card numbers were illegally accessed during the holiday season. This caused huge losses in terms of revenues for the company. As a result, the use of chips or EMV cards was implemented. Under this new scheme, EMV chips are used instead of magnetic stripes since said chips can check purchases through the unique verification codes. This is more ideal for the industry following the sensational “Target Breach.”

Conclusion 

What preventive measures can be made by companies to deal with this growing problem? Vulnerability to technology thieves should be your first concern. Organizations with limited expertise on Internet Technology should consider hiring an IT security specialist to determine the firm’s needs and weaknesses.

One possible solution is to conduct education and training sessions relevant to data security for employees. The next is to makes sure that company computers and other automated equipment are properly secured. All software utilized within your network should be updated constantly. Otherwise, obsolete programs are often used by hackers in gaining access to the organization’s systems and classified information. IT personnel must update applications on network-connected hardware.

See to it that you install the latest anti-virus software on all servers and work stations. This can detect and remove any malware (viruses or potential disruptions) in your computer software. Scan web apps and websites for viruses since these are also at risk just like your personal computers. Critical data needs to be backed up in case data is lost. Implementation of mitigation tools such as Distributed Denial of Service (DDOS) attacks along with cloud computing services has become a boon for modern-day business organizations.  These are cost-efficient approaches that each and every company in this modern era should adopt.