The interconnected world of today has made living our lives and running our businesses a lot more straightforward. Keeping up with international clients, monitoring cash flow and sharing ideas with colleagues are just some of the business activities that can be handled at the touch of a button. However, as we become more connected, we are also becoming more vulnerable.

Protecting ourselves and our businesses needn’t take up too much of our time and can start with some basic steps. For example, how many times have you been to a café and connected to their open Wi-Fi without giving it a second thought? I know I’ve done that more times that I can remember. Connecting to an unencrypted, public Wi-Fi network is a potentially dangerous thing to do as an attacker within reception range of the router can insert themselves as a ‘man-in-the-middle’, receiving your data without you even noticing. E-mails, banking information, passwords and whatever else you have stored in your phone could be accessed using this method. If you’re using an unencrypted public Wi-Fi, don’t use your phone for anything sensitive. It’s much safer to use an encrypted network which is one requiring a password. If you can use a VPN (virtual private network) at the same time, then even better.

Keeping the software on your personal computer and any other machines used for business is another simple and effective way to combat malicious attacks. Every time you receive a notification to update something, there is a good reason to do so. Usually patches and updates are a response to a vulnerability or exploit that has been found and could be used to gain access to a system. Malicious attackers target those who haven’t updated their software because they can use these vulnerabilities to gain access to their systems. So, next time you see a notification alerting you that it’s time to update, update!

Another great way to keep things secure is to choose your passwords wisely. Hackers can use vast online dictionaries to brute force their way into systems and accounts. The entries in these dictionaries number into the hundreds of millions and sophisticated algorithms can go through them all in a matter of minutes. Therefore, however obscure your password, there is a good chance that part of it features in one of these dictionaries. The key then, is to use a password that couldn’t possibly feature in one. Gobbledegook, long strings of words joined together or memorable nonsense are all good ways to select a password. Use a service like Last Pass, and you’ll only need to regularly remember one password to access all your favourite sites.

Joining us on this episode of Excellence Expected is network security expert Dr Kevin Curran of the University of Ulster. Kevin’s going to take us through some of the risks that we may overlook and what to do to keep safe online.

Issue Challenged in this Small Business Podcast:

How can I keep myself and my small business safe online?

About Kevin:

Dr Kevin Curran is a Reader in Computer Science at the University of Ulster and the group leader for the Ambient Intelligence Research Group. During his academic career, Kevin has authored over 600 published works and become one of the world’s leading authorities on pervasive computing and internet security. His pioneering work has led to speaking and lecturing invitations from international conferences, overseas universities and research institutes. Kevin is also a regular contributor to the BBC and other major media outlets.

He’s joining us on this episode of your favourite small business podcast to discuss some of the dangers facing those of us who conduct business online and what we can do to improve our internet security.

Actionable Tips:

1. If you didn’t go looking for it, do not install it! A lot of the trouble that people get into online is related to malware and ransomware that is installed on their computer after they install a program that has popped up on a website. Unless you specifically set out to install something, never click to install anything you find on a website or in an e-mail attachment.
2. If you’ve installed something, update it. If you see a notification saying it’s time to update a piece of software, then do it immediately. Keeping all your programs up to date is the first step in keeping your system safe. Malicious hackers and fraudsters use vulnerabilities and exploits in older versions to gain access to victims’ systems.
3. If you no longer need it, remove it. Have the most reduced footprint possible and remove programs that you haven’t used for a while. Often programs will run in the background even if you aren’t using them and this gives another opening for those who wish to access your system.

Top Quotes:

• “Try never to do banking or other sensitive activities over public Wi-Fi.”
• “As best practice, people should use VPN (virtual private network) software.”
• “Use encryption and make your customers use a password to access your free Wi-Fi. Don’t use an open access network like many of the public hotspots do.”
• “Keep your operating system and software updated. Vulnerabilities and exploits come up all the time, but Microsoft, Apple and Google have big security teams that are aware of them. Patches and updates are necessary to block the latest vulnerabilities.”
• “The more complex a password is, the better it is.”

Kevin’s Links:

• Kevin’s Twitter (https://twitter.com/drkevincurran)
• Kevin’s University of Ulster Page (http://scisweb.ulster.ac.uk/~kevin/)
• Have I Been Pwned? (https://haveibeenpwned.com/)
• Last Pass (https://lastpass.com/)

Key Timestamps:

• [02:16] Challenged Issue
• [02:30] Kevin’s Introduction
• [04:27] Network Security
• [07:01] Unknown Dangers
• [13:02] Security Shortcomings
• [23:50] Actionable Tips
• [30:22] Kevin’s Links

Don’t forget, the more you expect from yourself, the more you WILL excel!

The post Secrets from The Dark Side of the Web appeared first on Excellence Expected, by Mark Asquith.