Signs Cyber Criminals are Targeting Your Business

1. Your Systems Shut Down or Act Strange 

One telltale sign of a virus or breach forms of cyber crime . Is that your internal systems will begin to shut down or act strange. This may happen in communication software, money transfer systems, or your business website altogether. You may receive strange pop-ups or messages, find new applications you didn’t install yourself, experience redirected internet searches, and an array of other suspicious activity. These are all sure signs of a virus or other malware. 

2. Suspicious Employee Activity 

Suspicious activity may simply be caused by accidents or a lack of proper training in particular areas, but it can also mean someone’s credentials have been compromised. It’s easy for a hacker to pretend to be the CEO or another executive asking for information or funds from their subordinates. For those employees who have done this a thousand times before, they won’t think to double-check those credentials or with the executive themselves. Another common activity of employee accounts that should signal immediate red flags is any activity occurring after hours. 

3. Above Average Bandwidth Use or Outbound DNS Traffic 

Cyber crime can often operate under the surface, not by stealing data but by using your network to spread of terrorize others. If you notice above average bandwidth usage or outbound traffic, your network may be infected with bots. This may also be the case if you see unauthorized file sharing, both uploads and downloads. Another indication is called distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack, where hackers will overload your network with inbound traffic, effectively shutting it down. This is often a distraction for criminals use other means to steal data while  you handle the attack. 

What to Do if You Suspect You’re Being Targeted 

1. Quarantine Affected Devices and Networks 

If you can pinpoint which devices or networks have been compromised, the first thing you should do is quarantine them as soon as possible. This means disconnecting the device from the network and logging out of the system. You may even need to shut the system down entirely to keep malware or curious cybercriminals away from sensitive data. 

2. Revert to a Clean Backup 

One important, safe business practice you should implement from the start is to keep regular backups of your systems and data on a separate device. This device should be off site and not connected to your network in any way. This way, if a threat does penetrate your system or breach your data, you can easily revert to a clean, uncorrupted, unhacked backup and use it to secure any cloud-based data. You should only use clean systems to repair and restart your network, so ensure you always have a safe backup of your company’s data and code. 

3. Ditch Passwords 

Passwords are the most common form of breach, letting cybercriminals access confidential data through effectively impersonating a coworker. Passwords are incredibly easy to steal, and even hashed passwords can be decoded in just a few hours. To secure your data, ditch passwords and opt for a passwordless multifactor authentication system. 

TraitWare’s passwordless login system is easy to integrate into websites and applications and scales with your business. Make the safe, smart switch with TraitWare.