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Small size Businesses: Here is What You Need to Know About Cyber Security.

Small size Businesses: Here is What You Need to Know About Cyber Security. Expert Support is Worth It, Know as Little as Possible

Published

2 years ago

February 3, 2021

TwinzTech

Small Size Businesses Here is What You Need to Know About Cyber Security

News reports of hacking attempts, cyber-attacks and security breaches are hitting the headlines more and more often. We often hear about attacks on larger, household name brands, but the truth is that businesses of any industries and all sizes have fallen victim to cybercrime.

And, cyberattacks don’t just happen to big companies. Smaller businesses are often the most prominent targets because hackers do not expect them to become identical stringent security measures in place compared to the larger brands. If you own a small business, here are some key things to know about cybersecurity.

Table of Contents

1. Expert Support is Worth It | Small Business Cyber Security

Small Size Businesses Cyber Security

Cybersecurity and IT experts cost a lot to hire in-house. But the right story is that you can access expert support and resources in a much more affordable way by outsourcing to a managed IT services provider.

Many of these companies are designed to work closely with small businesses and take on the bulk of the work for you. They’re dedicated to acting proactively and ensuring that your business is well-protected while you can get on with running things.

2. Know as Little as Possible

Most hackers are after one thing: data. The more data a business collects and stores, the more attractive a target they will be to cybercriminals. But hackers can’t steal something that you don’t have.

Protect yourself by only collecting information that you need, and only storing it for as long as you have a legitimate business need.

3. Ensure Strong Data Protection

Of course, taking steps to reduce the amount of data you collect and hold is just one part of your strategy to protect your business against cybercrime. There is always going to be data that your business will need to store on a network. In this case, data protection should be taken too seriously.

Along with increasing the risk of a cyberattack, being careless with data could also get your business into trouble with the Federal Trade Commission.

Ensure that only authorized individuals can access the data that you store and use strong authentication methods, including unique passwords and two-step authentication for extra protection.

Bear in mind that hackers use software to guess passwords with ordinary words quickly, so using complex passwords is the best way to defend against breaches.

4. Provide Employee Education | Small Business Cyber Security

Finally, while you might be taking as many steps as possible to reduce the risk of cybercrime in your small business, understand that many attacks occur due to simple human error.

Phishing attacks, for example, can easily be made to look like emails sent from a trusted source, so it’s essential to ensure that all employees are given access to regular training on cybersecurity, how to recognize a potential attack, and what to do if they suspect cybercrime in any situation.

Today, cyberattacks are happening on a more frequent basis, and it’s often small businesses that are targeted due to their lack of strong security measures. If you run a small business, never assume that a cyberattack won’t happen to you because your brand is local and not as well-known as others.

Business

How small businesses can overcome their supply chain challenges

Here are six tips to help your small business overcome its supply chain woes. Staying in control with effective supply chain management.

Published

2 days ago

October 3, 2022

TwinzTech

Increase Your Income Streams with These Three Remote Business Ideas

Managing a supply chain is difficult for every business. Small businesses may have fewer supply chain requirements, but they also don’t have the financial clout of big operations, which suppliers are understandably willing to move mountains for.

Smaller businesses need to use their size to their advantage when dealing with supply chain challenges. While big companies are locked into mega orders and negotiating long-term partnerships, small operations can be nimble in the face of a dynamic market.

Here are six tips to help your small business overcome its supply chain woes.

Table of Contents

1. Always pay on time

It may be obvious, but the first tip is always to pay your vendors in full and on time. Small businesses have enough supply chain issues to deal with. You don’t need to make new ones for yourself.

Manage your cash flow efficiently and keep track of all your payments. This way, you’ll ensure you don’t come into conflict with suppliers and end up paying interest or even potentially ruining business relationships and reducing your options moving forward.

Plenty of payment methods are available for small businesses to better organize accounts payable, including Automated Clearing House (ACH) payments that completely remove the need for cash or checks. Other benefits of ACH payments for your small business include scheduling payment dates and recurring payments, effective cash management so you can hold onto funds for longer, and reduced transaction fees.

2. Identify risk areas

Supply chains are often complex, containing a series of components critical to business operations. Make sure your small business has a clear and comprehensive list of everything it needs, along with multiple suppliers capable of sourcing each piece. Identify any potential risks in your supply where you may only have one or two viable sources.

It’s easy for small businesses to fall into the trap of finding a single supplier that handles everything they need and leave it at that. Unfortunately, this puts the fate of your business in the hands of one vendor. Any problems they have delivering their products is now your problem. There is no reason to introduce this level of risk to your operations, and a much healthier way to run your business is to always give yourself multiple supply chain options.

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You never know if a specific product might become unavailable at short notice. However, as a smaller business needing lower quantities, you can use your agility and develop relationships with multiple suppliers. Try to find entirely separate vendors in different locations that do not work with the same manufacturers.

3. Stock management

Keeping track of your existing stock is critical regardless of the size of the business. You need precise numbers for everything you currently have in stock and estimates for current usage in order to restock in time and never is left short. Accurately forecasting demand is critical for businesses to effectively manage their stock and protect themselves from unplanned product shortages.

While it’s not always possible due to budgetary constraints or storage capacities, if you have a volatile supply chain, there are benefits in trying to increase your inventory levels. In particular, this applies to critical components that are harder to come by. You can do this by bulk buying when you have the opportunity or seeking financing options to invest more into your inventory.

4. Simplifying your supply chain

While it can help to offer a wide range of products, this places additional strain on your supply chain. More products mean expanding your supply chain, dealing with more vendors, and more complicated logistics. Where possible, remove or combine products to simplify your supply chain and save yourself time and headaches. Even larger companies are streamlining the products they offer, consolidating operations, and building supply chain resilience to limit future disruptions.

5. Managing logistics

Even once you source everything you need, you still have the logistical challenge and costs associated with getting it all delivered. With rising fuel prices, logistics costs are snowballing, and small businesses need to work hard to rein in the cost of moving their supply chain products. This may mean making larger orders from fewer suppliers to save money along the way.

6. Use supply chain tools

A range of supply chain tools can help businesses stay on top of their operations. While it may seem like overkill for your small business, Supply Chain Management (SCM) software can help you track inventory, manage logistics, and create a comprehensive real-time database of all your supply chain information.

Staying in control with effective supply chain management

Having steady, reliable, and fast access to everything your business needs is one of the most challenging parts of running a business. Unfortunately, even the biggest and most well-equipped companies in the world have supply chain struggles. But, by using your size to your advantage and identifying multiple sources for each type of inventory, you can remain in control even when inevitable supply chain mishaps occur.