President Biden spoke at the Business Roundtable’s CEO quarterly meeting about the US’s reaction to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. One of the most important points he made was the prospect of Russian cyberattacks and their consequences. Cyber attacks are becoming increasingly common, and it is only a matter of time before businesses and institutions are affected by them. This is why cyber security is so crucial.

What is Cyber Security?

Cyber security, also known as information technology security or electronic information security, refers to all of the technologies and procedures used to keep computer systems and data secure. In a world where more and more of our business and social lives are performed online, cybersecurity is more important than ever.

Types of Cyber Security Threats

1. Malware

Malware is a type of cyberattack in which malicious software performs unauthorized actions on the victim’s computer system. Malicious software or virus includes attacks such as ransomware, spyware, command and control, and more. Malware also steals data, credentials, payment information, and actively seeks to disrupt a target’s operations.

2. Phishing

Phishing is a type of cyberattack that is commonly used to gain sensitive data from consumers, such as login credentials and credit card information. Phishing occurs when a hacker poses as a credible entity and convinces a person to open an email, online chat, or text message. The recipient is then deceived into clicking a dangerous link, which can lead to the installation of malware, the freezing of the machine as part of a ransomware attack, or the revealing of sensitive information.

3. Password Attacks

Any method used to maliciously authenticate into password-protected accounts is referred to as a password attack. These assaults are frequently aided by the use of software that speeds up the cracking or guessing of passwords. Brute forcing, dictionary assaults, password spraying, and credential stuffing are the most popular attack tactics.

4. Denial of Service

A denial-of-service (DoS) attack is a form of cyberattack in which a malicious actor attempts to make a computer or other device unavailable to its intended users by disrupting its usual operation. DoS attacks work by overloading or flooding a targeted machine with requests until normal traffic cannot be processed, resulting in a denial of service to subsequent users.

5. SQL Injection

This is a web security flaw that allows an attacker to tamper with a database query made by an application. This type of cyberattack allows the attacker to have access to locked user data. In many circumstances, an attacker can modify or remove this data, causing the application’s content or behavior to be permanently altered.

5 Ways to Improve Cybersecurity

President Biden stated during the discussion that the scope of Russia’s cyber capability is significant and imminent. He went on to say that the federal government was doing its part to prepare and citizens should invest in technological capabilities to deal with cyberattacks.

5 Ways To Strengthen Cybersecurity

1. Create backups

Backing up your data will ensure that your data is always safe. Whether you save it on your desktop or cloud storage like Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, or Dropbox, any essential information should be copied and encrypted as soon as possible.

A good rule of thumb is to back up your data once a month. Remember that backups must be tested regularly; if you have any doubts about their reliability, you should seek professional assistance.

2. Use encryption and passwords

Whenever possible, encrypt all files, whether they are kept on a server or workstation, attached to emails, or on mobile devices. Effective security begins with strong passwords that combine alphabetic, numeric, and special characters. Consider implementing user screen timeouts as well.

3. Establish cyber security training and practice

Employees should only have access to the systems they need for their tasks, and any software should be installed with permission. Ensure cyber security training of employees to detect suspicious or unsolicited emails requesting that they click on a link, open an attachment, or provide account information. Everyone should be able to tell the difference between legitimate emails and phishing scams.

4. Secure wifi

Hackers can easily gain access to data by connecting to it via WiFi. Set up two distinct accounts when setting up wifi for your business: one public and one private for guests and employees respectively.

5. Use Anti-Virus Protection & Firewall

Antivirus prevents several cyberattacks such as malware and other harmful viruses from entering your device and corrupting your data while firewalls screen out a malicious activity that occurs over the Internet and decides what kind of traffic is permitted to enter your device. It’s best to use only one anti-virus tool from a reputable vendor.

How To Backup Your Personal Data

Creating a backup for your data to cloud storage using the CloudHQ Backup Wizard is safe and easy to do. You do not have to worry about losing your data; with this tool, you can save your data from storage or your email to another cloud storage.

For this tutorial, we will be doing a backup of Gmail to Google Drive.

• Sign in/Signup to your cloudHQ backup wizard account. From the Dashboard, select “sync & cloud” and you will be directed to the backup page.
  
• To create a backup for your personal data, select “Single User Setup” from the “sync & cloud” page.
  
• Choose a platform you are creating a backup for and drag it to the empty box on the left. For this tutorial, we will be doing a backup email to Google drive.
  
• Connect your email. You can backup the entire email or create the label you wish to be backed up, for example, you can backup your inbox or spam labels.
  
• Select and drag the google drive to the box on the right size and select your Google drive account email and grant CloudHQ access to your drive.
  If you need to use a different google drive email, simply enter the email and choose “Add Google Drive” and follow the prompts to allow access.
  
• After authorization, create a folder or select an existing one for your backup.
• Double Check your selections and select “start sync” afterwards. The backup process will start and you will be directed to a backup console where you can monitor the sync.
  

And that’s it! You have successfully created a backup for your email to your Google drive.

The process is the same if you’re creating a backup of other cloud storage platforms such as Dropbox with Google Drive or others.

The significance of cybersecurity cannot be overstated. It guards against the theft and damage of sensitive data, personally identifiable information, protected health information, personal information, intellectual property, data, and government and industrial information systems.