7 simple security measures to protect yourself from attacks with Microsoft 365
Every year, small and medium-sized enterprises are exposed to attempted breaches. With the rapid development of technology, cyber threats and data breaches are also increasing rapidly. One million new cyber threats are discovered every day. In this article, we give you 7 tips on how you can easily use the built-in features of Microsoft 365 to increase your IT security. The tools are already included in your license. All you have to do is use them.
Every day we read about new cyber threats and attacks that cost companies a lot of money. It is important to remember that not only large companies, but also smaller businesses can be targeted. In fact, 43% of all cyber attacks target companies with less than 300 employees, which represents 95% of the world's businesses.
To defend yourself against these attacks, you need to build the best possible protection. But that doesn't mean you have to spend a lot of money on security solutions. Through your Microsoft 365 license, you have access to several tools that can significantly increase your IT security. Since you already have access to all the tools, it won't cost you a dime.
Here are 7 tips on what you can do to improve your IT security today:
- Check your Secure Score - Secure Score is Microsoft's centralized security tool. Secure Score examines your company's IT environment to identify areas of risk. And gives you recommendations on how to improve your IT security. The evaluation is based on a point scale and gives you information about how you are doing in terms of security in comparison with other companies with a similar environment.
- Enable multi-factor authentication - Studies show that 90% of all passwords can be cracked in less than six hours and that two out of three use the same password at work as at home. No wonder 81% of breaches can be linked to weak or stolen passwords! Enabling multi-factor authentication is not only one of the most important measures but also one of the easiest. By supplementing the password with an additional authentication method, you can prevent up to 99.99% of all attacks.
- Use device management for mobile devices - Today's users expect to be able to work anywhere, anytime. In many cases, being able to access company data via your own device is a given. To adapt to the new working world, you need to strike a good balance between productivity and security. By using the mobile device management built into Microsoft 365, you can ensure that phones and tablets are PIN-protected. If a device is lost or stolen, you can remotely wipe it.
- Create a separate administration account - If you are a system administrator, it is likely that the hackers will attack you first. A good tip is therefore to create a separate user account with your own password that you only use when you need your administrator rights.
- Block suspicious file types - Of course, the best thing to do is not to click on those dangerous links and not to download those attachments that turn out to contain malware. But sooner or later someone will do it. Microsoft 365 has a built-in tool that protects the user's email. It keeps you safe by checking links and attachments and blocking potential threats.
- Save your files in OneDrive - Save your files where they are most secure, in the cloud. By storing your company's files on OneDrive, you enable easy recovery if they are affected by an attack.
- Block the possibility of automatic email forwarding - It is not uncommon for hackers who access a user account to forward the email to an external account, waiting for the right moment to strike. By blocking the feature, you can stop them.
Built-in IT security in Microsoft 365
Using Microsoft 365 is a prerequisite for following our advice, and using Microsoft 365 is actually advice in itself. Through decades of working to solve the problems that many businesses face, Microsoft has built an industry-leading level of protection. This protection works proactively to recognize and stop different types of intrusion attempts. Microsoft's Intelligent Security detects new attacks every second and millions of times a day.
Train your employees
Ultimately, no software can prevent attacks as effectively as a workforce trained to detect and stop threats. So finally, we want to make a case for working on the security culture in your company and educating your users. Sometimes things will still go wrong, but with the built-in features of Microsoft 365 as a safety net, you can hopefully sleep well at night anyway.
Do you want to know more about how you can strengthen your company's IT security with simple means? Here we have collected a number of films that give you even more tips in a fun and educational way. You can also book a free security analysis at WeSafe.se/SecurityCheck.
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