Internet provides businesses an opportunity to create an online interface to showcase their product and services. Small and medium-size businesses are also increasingly adopting e-commerce to a reach a wider market. However, small and medium-size businesses largely depend on third party web hosting providers for security of their online channel. These organizations also face budgetary constraints in securing their networks from all prevalent threats in the IT environment. A recent survey by Symantec reveals online attacks and information loss as top business risk for small and medium-sized businesses.
Information security is crucial to inspire customer trust and to reap the benefits of e-commerce. Computer systems may also contain databases containing privileged business information. Loss or breach of such information may adversely affect the competitiveness of the affected organization. Again, information loss has huge financial implications for the affected organizations. Therefore, small and medium businesses must ensure information security.
Usually, large organizations avail ethical hacking services to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities in the IT infrastructure. Small and mid-size businesses must ensure that their service providers have the requisite firewalls, intrusion detection and prevention systems and data backup facilities. They must also identify, whether the web hosting service provider offers secure socket layer (SSL) for accepting debit card, credit card and net banking payments from customers.
Vendors of IT security products are now offering customized products, which cater to the price and security considerations of a small and medium business organization. Small and medium businesses must use those services, which offer protection from viruses and Trojans, spyware and malware and conform to payment card industry (PCI) standard requirements. The services must ensure e-mail and Internet security. Small and medium businesses may also benefit from the cloud computing solutions that facilitate a business to increase capacity, enhance capabilities and service upgrades. Small and medium businesses may avail the services of information security professionals to evaluate the strength of the security infrastructure and initiate measures to ensure information safety, confidentiality and integrity.
Information security professionals, ethical hacking
