Cyber threats are an increasing worry in the digital age, especially for small to medium-sized businesses, with SMBs being the target of 43% of all cyber attacks.
This alarming statistic indicates why it’s so important to be aware of the ever-changing landscape of cyber threats your SMB faces. This is especially true considering we’re in the age of remote work, cloud computing, and sharing data amongst a seemingly infinite plethora of internet-connected devices and networks.
That’s where the importance of network security comes into play, with managed IT providers helping to protect your data.
In this blog post, we will discuss the importance of network security for SMBs and why taking the necessary steps to protect networks should be a top priority for your organization.
Why Network Security is Important For Your Business
As a business owner or manager, you may be asking yourself, “why do we need network security?”
From regulatory compliance to reputation management and cost savings, let’s take a look at some of the key reasons why network security is important to the overall success of your organization.
1. Protects Sensitive Data
Why is network security important? Firstly, it helps to protect your sensitive data and ensure information security.
As a SMB, you likely have confidential information that is stored on your network, such as:
- Employee information
- Customer data
- Financial records
- Intellectual property
If this information falls into the wrong hands, it can have devastating consequences for your business. Luckily, network security measures, such as firewalls, encryption, and access controls, can help prevent unauthorized access to this information.
Find out how a managed service provider (MSP) can come in handy when improving your network security posture. Check out these additional resources to learn more about the importance of network security and how we can help:
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2. Prevents Cyber Attacks
Cybercriminals are constantly evolving their tactics, making it harder for businesses of all sizes to stay protected – and SMBs such as your own are often targeted by cybercriminals because they have weaker security measures in place.
Network vulnerabilities can come in many forms, from unpatched software, insufficient access controls, unencrypted data, and much more – with successful cyber attacks resulting in:
- Loss of revenue
- Reputation damage
- Legal liabilities
- And more damage
Implementing network security measures such as anti-virus software, intrusion detection, and vulnerability management, however, can help to prevent cyber attacks from occurring in the first place and save you thousands in the long run.
3. Enables Cost Savings
On average, cyber attacks can cost your small business up to $164 per breached record, averaging out to about $2.98 million in total for organizations with fewer than 500 employees.
In essence, no business is safe from the costly damages of a security breach, and it’s better to be safe than sorry when it comes to network security.
Network security protects your business finances in the following ways:
- Preventing data breaches
- Reducing the cost of downtime
- Avoiding fines and legal costs
- Protecting intellectual property
- And more
Save Up To $2.98 Million On Cyber Attacks
Strengthen Your Network Security Posture with The Isidore Group
4. Ensures Regulatory Compliance
Depending on your industry and location, you may be subject to various regulations and laws that require you to protect and keep data secure.
For example, if you handle credit card information, you must comply with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).
Failure to comply with industry regulations can result in everything from fines, legal action, and reputational damage.
If you take steps to ensure network security and partner with an MSP who is knowledgeable about your industry, you can ensure compliance with these regulations.
5. Improves Productivity
Another reason why network security is important is that it can improve your business's productivity. When your network is secure, your employees can work without interruption, knowing that their work and data is protected.
And considering that the average cost of downtime is between $300k to $400k per hour, your business productivity is simply something you shouldn’t be willing to compromise.
By implementing network security measures, you can minimize the risk of downtime and ensure that your employees can work efficiently.
6. Maintains Customer Trust
Finally, the importance of network security lies in helping your organization maintain customer trust.
In today's world, customers are increasingly aware of the risks of cyber threats and are more likely to take their business elsewhere if they do not trust a business's security practices.
You may be asking yourself, “why do we need network security?” but they already know the answer, and may not be willing to do business with you if they feel their sensitive data is at risk.
By implementing robust network security measures, you can demonstrate to your customers that you take their security seriously and can be trusted with their sensitive data.
The Importance of Network Security & Working with a Reliable MSP
Why is network security important?
Helping safeguard your digital assets, maintaining a positive reputation amongst your customers, and saving hundreds of thousands on cyber attacks are just some of the ways that ensuring that you have proper network security helps ensure the long-term success of your business.
But from assessing your network security vulnerabilities to knowing what industry regulations you need to comply with when working with shared data between your computer networks, it’s a shot in the dark trying to accomplish cyber and network security on your own.
In working with a reliable, experienced managed service provider (MSP) like The Isidore Group, we can help you with the following:
- Penetration testing
- Network vulnerability assessments
- Regular patching and updates
- Threat detection and response
- Traffic management of unauthorized users
- Antivirus and firewall installation
- Installing intrusion prevention systems
- Implementing access controls
- And more
Increase your long term success by implementing state-of-the-art network security systems with our team of IT and network security professionals today – contact us to learn more about how we can help!
