We all think that malware, hacks and ransomware happen to “the other guy” but that’s not true. Here are some sobering thoughts from a presentation last week in Las Vegas by U.S. Secret Service Technical Special Agent Ian Benny, which prompted some suggestions of our own as well:
- YES, IT CAN HAPPEN TO YOU: Not all hacking happens just to big companies like Target, TJX and MGM. It happens to sites of companies of all sizes.
- REVIEW SUSPICIOUS EMAIL STYLES WITH STAFF: It’s not foolproof, but you can enlighten your staff as to some common hacker tactics:
- Watch for emails asking for a change of bank account or direct deposit information.
- Warn your staff of emails asking them to buy gift cards for you or the office.
- Don’t ever click on an attachment that they weren’t expecting.
- LOOK AT THE SENDER’S EMAIL ADDRESS: If it purports to be from American Express but the sender’s email address doesn’t even say American Express or does but has other letters in it, delete it.
- LOGOS AND FANCY ARTWORK ARE PART OF THE GAME: Convincing graphic design work doesn’t make it real.
- CHANGE YOUR PASSWORDS FREQUENTLY: Daily in a big company.
- DON’T USE THE SAME PASSWORD EVERYWHERE: If it gets compromised, then they can do real damage everywhere.
- MOST HACKING IS COMING FROM RUSSIA: If your network provider can ban access, you should do so. This is a big business in Russia, and they even have magazines about it. After the export of oil, this may be their biggest source of revenue, according to Agent Benney.
- COMPLAINTS ON CYBER CRIMES AND OTHER CYBER-ENABLED FRAUD FILED WITH FBI: 800,000 in 2022. Source: FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center
We’re all about more sales from your website, but if your site is down, so are your sales.
Onward & Upward!
For more information: https://detroitseocompany.com/blog/seo-facts/tell-google-your-site-is-popular/
