Most business owners don’t have the time or even the care to think about network security. And why should they? Isn’t that what they pay the “Tech Guy”to care about? Isn’t that what anti-virus is for? The words ‘UTM Appliance’, ‘Endpoint Security’ and ‘AUP’ are all gibberish to most business owners. The reality is unless you have some sort of IT management contract, you’re more than likely insecure and vulnerable to viruses, malware, and even hackers – yes, hackers can and do target small businesses.

Network and IT security is a large and broad scope of skills, knowledge and expertise. Thousands of new viruses are released daily. Malware is hidden in websites you wouldn’t think it would be. But it’s not just viruses and malware you have to protect your company from. Securing your important data from internal theft, ensuring your website is safe and can’t be hacked, and putting an effective Appropriate Use Policy in place, all fall under the realm of IT Security.

That’s why having your IT services under the management of a professional IT firm can give you the peace of mind to know that your IT security is being monitoring, managed, and maintained. With an IT Management Contract in place, like Partek360, your network and data security is now the responsibility of a team of experts that can monitor, manage, and make recommendations on the best practices to implement in order to ensure your network and data is safe.

Here’s a few items to discuss with your IT company to make sure you have a baseline of network security:

1. Is your Anti-Virus a stand-alone product, or is it fully monitored and managed?
2. Do you have a UTM appliance, or just a “Small Business Router”.
3. Do staff have administrative access on their computers or do they require a password to install new applications from a System Administrator.
4. Where is your email hosted, and on what system?
5. What platform is your website on and is it secure, up-to-date, and regularly backed up.
6. How are your Windows Operating System and other applications updated and patched.

Unfortunately most businesses balance security with cost, and often leave it to chance thinking that only big companies are a target. The reality is a security breach of any kind can often cost a small business a lot more in the long run as a percentage of overall revenue compared to a big company.

If you’d like to learn more about Partek and our approach to Network Security, please contact us.