82,000. Do you know what that number is? It’s the number of NEW malware threats that are being designed and launched online EVERY SINGLE DAY. That may explain why 74% of small businesses report having experienced online bank fraud in a recent survey by the Ponemon Institute, and why they’re calling 2014 “A Year of Mega-Breaches.”

There’s no doubt about it: cybercrime is a thriving business that is on the rise; and simply having an antivirus software and firewall isn’t enough anymore to protect yourself. Worse yet, businesses do NOT enjoy the same protections as consumers. If money is wired from your account or drawn by ACH draft, the likelihood of getting that back is SLIM and the bank is not responsible for replacing funds stolen. If you want to avoid being a victim, here are three simple precautions you can take right now.

  1. Lock Down Your Environment. If you do online banking, ONLY access your account via a dedicated PC that you don’t use for accessing social media sites, web browsing or e-mail. This will limit the chances of a keylogger (a malware program that records your keystrokes) from being installed on your PC to grab your keystrokes.
  2. Get Notified. Sign up for e-mail notifications for withdrawals. Many online banking services will allow you to sign up for e-mail alerts whenever a certain amount of money is withdrawn from your account. Since speed of notification is CRITICAL to stopping a cybercriminal from robbing you blind, this could give you the quick notification that a large sum of money has been withdrawn. Notify your bank IMMEDIATELY of any suspicious activities.
  3. Have a Unified Threat Management (UTM) in place. Cybercriminals are far more sophisticated in their attacks and can easily bypass traditional firewalls and antivirus software. With the proliferation of mobile devices accessing your network and the growing use of cloud applications and free social media web sites (Twitter, Facebook and even online reviews), the chances of an employee accidentally infecting your network are growing exponentially. Don’t bring a knife to a gunfight; call us today to discuss how we can protect you.