Cyber Crime Fighters Unite Against “Leaving Your Keys in the Car"

We said it before, and we will say it again; Cyber Security is not an IT problem, it’s an EVERYONE problem. But problems are made to be solved, right? There are ways to keep your systems protected. One thing you should definitely do is always keep your systems up-to-date as well as run a current antivirus software on your PC.

There are a ton of good ones out there that can protect you, like ESET for example, we have been using their products for years for our business-owning clients, but they also have great stuff for home computers.

If you own or run a business, you can (and probably should) invest in a good hardware security appliance – notice how I didn’t say firewall. 

What’s the difference? 

Well, a firewall does one thing, block traffic based on a rule that is set to allow or block. A security appliance like the ones from our good friends at WatchGuard does many things besides acting as a firewall, making it far more effective in protecting you.

Think about it this way:

• Car #1 is directly exposed to people passing it. It only has a padlock with a three digit code and the keys are in the ignition.
  
  
• Car #2 is parked away from the street where the perimeter is fully fenced, there are cameras and two large dogs guarding it—it also has an alarm system.



For an average malicious person, Car #1 is not that hard to ‘borrow’ just as it is not that hard for cyber criminals to take down a system with only a firewall. Car #2, on the other hand, would be far harder to steal because even if you get past the fence there are many other things keeping it protected.

Similar to Car #2, a security appliance provides layers of protection which keeps cyber criminals at bay. Cyber criminals like low hanging fruit and there is plenty of it out there—just don’t be the one that gets picked by making it easy for the bad guys. It is naïve to assume everything is OK. Get the facts from your IT professional and, if needed, put simple things in place that are built to protect you.