How to Protect a Windows 10-run Business from Cyberattacks

For a modern-day business to be successful, it needs always to be online, connected to the Internet. This makes work more efficient and allows enterprises to grow at a rapid pace. Sadly, this also has a big negative effect: cybercriminals are continually finding new ways to breach companies and steal their data. In 2017 alone, the global economy lost 600+ billion dollars to criminals. They attack corporate networks, individual staff members, finances, and more.

In 2020, most businesses are run on Windows 10, and to make it secure, you’ll need to do more than install a good antivirus program. In this post, we’ll share a list of actions you should take to protect your business. No, we won’t be answering questions like is PC Matic good in 2020, or what is the best Kaspersky subscription, although they are significant ones. The focus will be on a broader spectrum of tools and regulations.

The Most Effective Solutions

The first thing that you need to do is make sure automatic updates are enabled. That way, the OS will download and install the latest updates regularly, without any effort on your side. But, you’ll still need to be involved and continuously check for new releases. Now, there are two types of updates with Windows 10.

• Quality updates are released once a month and aim to fix issues and patch up vulnerabilities in the system. By factory settings, all Windows 10 computers install the latest Quality updates as soon as they are released on the official Microsoft website.
• Feature updates, in turn, include new tools, features, and solutions. In contrast to the Quality updates, they require several gigabytes of free space on the drive. Plus, they take longer to install. New Feature updates are available twice a year. This is important: Win 10 doesn’t download and install them automatically, which means it’s up to you to make sure you’ve got all the latest features added to the OS.

Windows 10 allows pausing all updates for more than a month. Why is that important? Well, while it is generally a good idea to keep the system up to date, sometimes, it’s better to wait. For example, the updates might be flawed, and it will be wiser to let the developers fix the flaws. Secondly, updates involve downtime – that can be a problem if the team is on a tight schedule. Always keep these two factors in mind.

User Account/ID Management

All Win 10 user accounts are protected by passwords. Besides, we recommend using an authentication mechanism to improve security. Most businesses create or join a domain, making it easier to keep tabs on all the users. In the latest edition of Windows 10, you can take advantage of the Active Directory tool. It gives specific staff members/groups of users access to corporate data (both local and network).

As an Administrator, you’ll be able to customize the system and install/delete software solutions. The regular employees should be registered as Standard users. It’s vital to keep track of this and never allow ordinary users more control over the OS. The reason: it’s not rare for inexperienced users to interrupt the workflow or create vulnerabilities when they get access to tools that they aren’t familiar with.

Next, don’t ever underestimate the value of a strong password. We recommend installing and running Microsoft’s Windows Hello feature. It implements the two-step verification system. PIN codes and biometric authentication should also be considered.

Besides, try to propagate the idea of “strong password” among your colleagues and employees. It is vital for the integrity of the whole system. Once the malicious agent gets into the workers’ computer, it can spread via the shared network or contaminate files. Thus, emphasizing the importance of the password and security is one of the pillars of corporate security.

Data Encryption

No matter how good of an online administrator you may be, “physical” security is still a significant threat in 2020. You never know which staff member will forget his/her corporate laptop in a bar or a taxi. That’s where data encryption comes to aid. We’re talking about the BitLocker – another built-in Windows 10 feature. It’s quite good at securing corporate devices and includes both 128- and 256-bit AES encryption.

This encryption protocol is used not only by corporate “monsters” but also by government agencies around the world. For the BitLocker to work, the laptop/tablet/PC must have a specific chip and run one of the Win10 business editions (Enterprise, Pro, or even Education). It’s also critical that all the external drives are encrypted as well.

Portable hard and flash drives and MicroSD cards are trendy among corporate workers these days. And, they have a higher chance of being stolen or lost. Therefore, make sure that BitLocker covers every single external device used by the staff. This can be a tedious task, but once the Bitlocker is up and running, you won’t have to worry about this anymore.

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