A managed IT services provider does more than just manage your IT networks. From helping you to select hardware and software for your business to optimize business processes, to assisting with moving operations to the cloud, a managed IT provider can assist with multiple aspects of your business’s digital life. A major area of support that a managed IT services provider offers is assistance with securing your IT environment. MSPs can run security audits, train staff on IT security best practices, and implement processes and procedures to minimize risk.
When it comes to IT security, many businesses hone in on installing firewalls and antivirus software, and filtering out spam and phishing emails from inboxes. However, there are often many, less complex security vulnerabilities hanging around your office that your managed IT services provider can help you identity and ultimately create a plan of action.
Weak Wi-Fi Passwords
Companies, especially small businesses will often select an easy to remember password for their company Wi-Fi. A pet’s name, the date the company was founded, and even basic passwords like “wifi1234” are often used to secure routers in an office that transmit sensitive information. After some tinkering around, a savvy cybercriminal could easily get into a company’s IT infrastructure through a weak password on a Wi-Fi router. A managed IT services provider will work with a company to ensure that all routers and access points are secured with strong passwords. Additionally, they can help set up processes that change these passwords at regular intervals to keep the routers secure.
BYOD Devices
On top of having weak Wi-Fi passwords, businesses often allow employees to connect multiple devices to the company Wi-Fi. In this day and age where mobile internet is allotted in set amounts, employees want the freedom to connect to their company Wi-Fi on their smartphones and other devices, without digging into their expensive data plans. However, with an influx of personal devices accessing a company’s Wi-Fi there are increased security risks. Your IT provider can assist you with writing and implementing Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies that include steps employees need to take before connecting their personal devices to the company Wi-Fi. This can help keep employees on the network securely, while providing the flexibility of allowing staff to use their own devices on the company internet.
Passwords and Post-it Notes
This is something we see often when we make onsite visits to our clients. Employees keep user names and passwords on sticky notes, bulletin boards, and scraps of paper stuck to the side of cubicles. While it may make it easy for an employee to remember how to access systems by referencing a sticky note adhered to a computer monitor, it leaves sensitive account information out in the open, for anyone to see. An MSP can assist by instructing employees on how to securely save account information in their notes within their email accounts, as well as how to create strong, yet easy-to-remember passwords for accessing company email.
