Top Tips For Small Business Security Planning

June 14, 2022July 8, 2022 Editor

The average data breach cost for small businesses was $2.98 million in 2021. Data breaches occur due to poor cybersecurity and physical security practices, and the cost of a security breach can cause small businesses to fail.

So, how do you keep your small business safe and avoid losses from security breaches?

Keep reading as we cover the best tips to improve security for your small business – including access control, surveillance, and cyber-physical security practices. The trust of your stakeholders and your business’s future success depends on your data’s security.

Best Tips To Improve Security For Your Small Business

Suppose you’re considering how to plan your security strategy to keep your people, assets, and digital assets safe. In that case, this guide will help you to construct a modern and sophisticated security strategy. Here are the top tips and technologies for small business security planning.

Install Access Control

Access control is the foundation of any effective security strategy for a small business. The building from which your small company operates contains valuable data and employees that you must keep secure. Access control is a barrier to entry that prevents unauthorized users from entering your building and the spaces within your facility.

Modern commercial door entry systems are cloud-based and operate using mobile technologies. Your staff will hold digital access keys on their mobile devices to enter the building. Access control uses WiFi, Bluetooth, and cellular communication to ensure traffic runs smoothly into your building. Users can wave their hand in front of the access reader, allowing them to enter without rummaging around in their bag to present their device directly in front of the reader.

Another benefit of a modern access control system is that you can operate doors remotely using a cloud-based control center or mobile application. So, you do not have to be on-site if you need to grant a contractor or visitor entry to your building. This can be particularly beneficial for small businesses with a hybrid work model.

You can install access control throughout your building with smart door locks that you can use to secure supply rooms, server rooms, and other spaces in your building that house valuable assets and sensitive data.

Install Video Security

In addition to access control, video security is a staple feature in any effective security strategy. Not only does it provide evidence should a crime occur at your building, but it will also help deter criminals from attempting to enter your property.

You can integrate video security and access control at your building’s entrance to perform identity verification. One of the critical vulnerabilities in an access control system is the potential for unauthorized users to steal access credentials and use them to access your building. Video intercom readers at your building’s doors will allow you to view access control information on the same interface as video feed information.

Integrate Cybersecurity Principles Into Physical Security Hardware

Cybersecurity principles aren’t just for the digital security sphere. You can apply cybersecurity principles to your physical security strategy. For example, when you upgrade your hard drives, you need to protect your business by ensuring that the sensitive data stored on your discarded hard drives can never be accessed. Hard drive destruction is the only way to completely remove all traces of data from a hard drive. This way, important financial records, confidential employee information, and internal documents can never be retrieved.

The zero-trust cybersecurity policy prevents users from accessing all digital resources in a system and only grants them access to the resources they need. This way, companies can protect themselves from an internal security breach risk.

The same applies to your physical security strategy. Not all visitors and employees who can access your building should be able to access areas housing sensitive data and valuable company assets. The trustworthiness of every person who can enter your building should not be assumed. This is why you should install internal door locks to secure the spaces in your building that house valuable assets. Zero-trust prevents your business from falling victim to an internal security breach, which could lead to losses for your business and will put the trust of your stakeholders in the balance.

Merge Cyber And Physical Security Strategies

Since cloud-based security has risen in popularity, it has become more challenging for physical and IT security teams to operate separately. Cloud-based security installations must be protected using cybersecurity software, and you must preserve digital assets in your building with physical security measures.

With the linked and merged nature of modern physical and cyber security comes the need to integrate IT and physical security teams. By connecting teams, you can create a more effective overarching security strategy for your business. Both teams will be able to communicate more effectively and collaborate on a security strategy that accounts for both the physical and digital elements of physical security.

Summary

Hopefully, this guide has given you a deeper understanding of the modern security climate and the emerging technologies that can help you develop a sophisticated and futureproof security strategy for your business. Consider which security features would benefit your business the most in line with your current system’s vulnerabilities.