Keeping Your Business Secure

Regardless of whether your business is just starting out or a full blown corporation, business security is very important. An alarm system can be used to protect your business’ property, while data security precautions can protect your important data and information.

Business Security

One of the easiest ways to secure the valuable property at your business is to install an alarm system. Alarm systems can be either monitored or unmonitored depending on your needs. Monitored systems have a private company watching the system around the clock. If something goes wrong and you are unable to be contacted, the private company will automatically alert the police. Unmonitored alarm systems are equipped with loud sirens and lights that trigger if the system is not disengaged. These systems rely on you or your business neighbors to contact the police if the alarm is sounded. For both types of alarm systems, you should post the alarm system signs outside your office to alert others that your business is secure.

Generally alarm systems can be equipped with upgrades, including:

• Key Fobs that give you the ability to arm and disarm the system from outside without a passcode.
• Door and window sensors that trigger the alarm when a door or window is opened or broke.
• Motion Detectors that are activated by any motion within the room.
• Video Monitoring that captures video to a Digital Video Recorder (DVR) or streams a live video feed.
• Panic Buttons that contact the police immediately during an emergency.

Installing an alarm system for your business has many benefits. First of all, many insurance companies are willing to offer discounts on business insurance with the installation of an alarm system. Additionally, if you have video monitoring, you can save money on false claims from within your business because all activities are recorded by the alarm system. Finally, the overall safety of your business will improve. The features included in modern alarm systems can provide support and safety for your employees by automatically alerting the police if a problem arises.

Data Security

It is important to keep not only your business secure, but you should also take the necessary precautions to protect your data. A breach in data security can require extra time and money to secure the lost data and to reestablish the any customer mistrust. There are many easy ways to increase the security of your data.

First, it is important to have multiple computers in order to avoid storing all data on one computer. If your data is stored on multiple computers, then the risk of having all of it destroyed by one virus or hacked email is much lower. Additionally, it is crucial to invest in a quality data backup system that backs up your files and data regularly to continue smooth operation in the event of a security breach.

Next, you should ensure that your wireless network is secure, your wireless router is encrypted, and you are using WPA2 wireless security. In addition, a firewall is a good idea to prevent communication to other networks outside of the scope of your business. Similarly, anti-virus software should be installed on all computers to prevent viruses, trojans and other types of malware from stealing your passwords and important information.

For your employees, it is very important to instill an Internet use policy. You should limit personal Internet use to avoid accidentally opening a website with malicious software or viruses. Personal usernames and passwords are great tools that can be used to not only protect information on personal computers, but also to block websites that are not required for that employee’s job. Additionally, make sure your employees are aware of the dangers of phishing emails. These emails are typically disguised as legitimate emails that have either viruses embedded in attachments or requests for login and password information. Make sure all computers have an adequate system in place to filter out these spam messages.

Written By Aaron Gilley of Security Essentials of Lexington.