When it comes to ransomware and cyber terrorism, bigger businesses tend to be more at risk. Ransomware is a financially motivated malicious software attack, while cyberterrorism is a politically driven agenda, so if you have a small WordPress travel blog, you can probably sleep easy. Government agencies face the biggest risk when it comes to cyber terrorism, but the two are not mutually exclusive. What’s particularly terrifying about the new era of cyber terrorism is the fact that it is another medium of infiltration for terrorist groups. The damage that could be done at the hands of the wrong people is limitless; think gaining access to air traffic control bases for example.

The intangibility of cyber terrorism and ransomware is particularly unnerving as we feel defenceless against the shrouded dangers that these threats present. They can occur at any place and at any time, so how do you as a business ensure that you are in the best position to strengthen security?

Quantifying the risk is a good starting point for any business. Take a step back and examine what could potentially result if your network came under attack. In the instance of an online store, there is a real chance of loss of trade due to being taken offline, while other companies might have their customers data compromised. Having a handle on the potential risk you face enables you to consider better just how high your security infrastructure needs to be.

It is imperative that you have a very resilient antivirus protection, with a more intensive monitoring and malware scanning functionality as your business grows. Prevention is better than cure, and keeping your anti-virus regularly updated will offer you the strongest form of protection for your web presence. Having anti-virus that protects both hardware and actual web presence is vital; people tend to miss out on the latter, and in the current global environment, more and more threats are coming through the internet.

Passwords are an oldie but goodie. Everyone knows the importance of having strong passwords and changing them regularly, but not many of us follow through with this. If you are using your name, birth date, and partners name, for example, you are not adequately protecting yourself.

Scheduling in regular backups to external hardware is one of the easiest and foolproof ways of keeping your data secure. By getting into the habit of this, you are lessening the potential damage that a cyber-attack could unleash.

Threats of cyber terrorism and ransomware attacks show no sign of dissipating. In fact, the attacks are increasingly advanced with the aim to cause maximum damage, so we must remain relentless in our fight against malicious cyber assaults.