To run a successful business, it’s not enough to think about growth or increasing your bottom line. You also have the responsibility of protecting your customers’ data, as well as yours. This is why it’s crucial to take steps in keeping your business website secure at all times. As your user experience hero, we know all about creating attractive and intuitive websites that are secure and reliable. Here are some of our tried and tested measures.
Your software
Software updates are a pain, but they are a necessary evil. Regardless of the platform, you’re using to run your site, it’s crucial that you install updates as and when they become available. Platforms and software are always on the receiving end of hackers’ efforts, and once in a while, they find security flaws. These put sites, including yours, at risk of attack. Updates are then released to patch up these holes. If you ignore them, it’s only a matter of time before hackers find your vulnerabilities and exploit them.
One thing that all sites should have is a web-application firewall. Basically, it’s the best way to block unwanted traffic, attacks, and more. Even if you think that your site isn’t a likely target, it’s still smart to have this extra layer of security in place because you simply can’t be too careful these days.
Your logins
This might sound like simple common sense, but using strong passwords remains one of the best ways to keep a secure website. Brute force attacks are designed to crack passwords, and you have a better chance of withstanding these when you use complex passwords. While these can be hard to keep track of, there are password management apps designed to help you stay on top of them.
Data encryption
SSL encryption is pretty standard on most websites these days. Essentially, SSL establishes an encrypted link between your web server and the user’s browser so that all data that passes between the two remain private at all times. This is important because, on an unsecured website, a hacker can intercept credit card information (and the like) as a user submits a filled-out form, which can be a nightmare scenario.
It’s not enough to have SSL encryption on customer pages, too. In fact, it’s good practice to install encryption on your login pages, as well. This way, your login credentials are just as protected.
Always one step ahead
Know that hackers and their methods are constantly evolving, so if you want to keep your website secure, you want to always stay a step ahead. This is just one of the many components of digital transformation and, by extension, data protection, and security. Machine learning is essential to proactive monitoring of your network, as well as to better fend off identity threats and breaches through analysis of authorization requests.
It’s best practice to regularly perform security scans on your website. This proactive approach allows you to check for vulnerabilities in both your website and server and is a great addition to your arsenal. There’s a number of free tools you can use to schedule and perform these scans, as well.
Backing up regularly is another habit that you also need to get into. Understand that there is still a chance for your best-laid precautions to fail. If you find your site compromised, a recent backup will be invaluable in helping you recover. It’s a good idea, therefore, to schedule rolling backups several times a day. It’s also wise to have both on-site and off-site backups so you can fully recover even in worst-case scenarios.
Ultimately, how well you secure your website plays a huge role in keeping your business successful. As long as you stay on top of these components, you’re on the right track. And remember, you can always call on User X to help!
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