The Confident SMB

What SMBs can learn from the 2011 Cost of a Data Breach Study

Dal Gemmell | 10 May 2012 | 0 comments

Careless employees continue to cost companies millions. That’s one of the key takeaways from the 2011 Cost of a Data Breach Study released last month by Symantec and the Ponemon Institute, which provides valuable insight into the data breaches that occurred during the past year.

Negligent insiders were the top source of data breaches in 2011, causing 39 percent of all breaches in the study. Just behind negligence, malicious attacks caused 37 percent of all breaches and were the most expensive type of breach, averaging $222 per lost record.

Overall, the average organizational cost of a data breach was $5.5 million last year, and the cost per lost or stolen record was $194. It’s important to remember that although there was a reported decrease in data breach costs, the financial consequences of data breaches are still very significant, especially for an SMB.

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SMBs and Mobile Devices: Secure and Protect…Now!

Chris Halcon | 27 Apr 2012 | 0 comments

Save the Date for our Twitter Chat (hashtag #SMBChat)

Mobile devices have the potential to both supercharge and invade SMBs. Employees use these devices to surf the Web, check emails, access business critical applications and to be more productive no matter their location. But this enhanced productivity comes with risks – lost or stolen devices and mobile malware are significant concerns for small businesses.

Join Symantec’s SMB mobility experts and small business expert Anita Campbell of Small Business Trends on Wednesday, May 2 at 4:00 p.m. PT / 7:00 p.m. ET to chat about how SMBs can mitigate risks while leveraging mobile technologies.

SMBs must protect their business information regardless of where it resides – whether on the road or in the office. SMBs need to take steps to...

Seven Tips for Protecting Your SMB’s Information on Mac and Windows

andysinger | 26 Apr 2012 | 0 comments

According to Apple, nearly one in four computers sold in the United States is a Mac. The Flashback virus, which targets a Java vulnerability in Mac OS for which Apple has since issued a security update, spread quickly and more viruses are sure to follow. SMBs that use Macs to fuel their businesses need to take the appropriate steps to protect your information.

How did we get to this point? Imagine you grew up in a small town where you never had to lock your doors. This town is tucked away in the countryside, where surely no criminals would ever care to travel. But over time, more and more people move to your little paradise, seeking escape from life in the big city. When you come home one evening and see that you’ve been robbed, you finally realize that your little town has changed forever. It can no longer lie untouched by the...

Five Ways to Control SMB Operating Costs

Grant M Symantec.cloud | 03 Apr 2012 | 0 comments

Feeling the pinch? These days, all of us are looking for ways to trim budgets and our operating expenses. After all, who doesn’t like to save money? One pain point that consumers, enterprises and small businesses share is their energy consumption. But it’s not just the heat of summer or the cold of winter that ratchets up the kilowatts. If you are an SMB, your IT systems have a significant impact on your energy consumption. The good news is that there are things small businesses can do to make their energy bill more bearable year-round.

Most SMBs don’t realize just how big of a footprint their IT equipment has on the environment and how much they could save by reducing it. You can make laudable changes without compromising the quality and performance of your equipment or processes. In fact, it’s not hard to have the best of both worlds: high product performance and low energy use.

Below are some tips for fostering energy-efficient...

The Best Defense is a Good Offense

Dal Gemmell | 11 Oct 2011 | 0 comments

It’s fairly easy for SMBs to tune out the seemingly daily headlines of massive data breaches—many SMBs simply think that a data breach is not a small business problem. But, it’s not just large corporations on the receiving end of targeted attacks aimed at stealing valuable business information; SMBs are the unfortunate victims of their fair share of data breaches too. And it’s costing them to the tune of $214 per lost record.

If even the big guys are falling victim, what’s an SMB, with limited budgets and fewer IT resources, to do to protect against such costly attacks? SMBs, it’s time for action. As the age-old sports mantra goes, ‘the best defense is a good offense.’ And, National Cyber Security Awareness month is the time to make sure your offensive line is in shape.

Symantec recommends the following to get you playing at a championship level:

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2011 Internet Security Threat Report Identifies Increased Risks for SMBs

Kevin Haley | 04 Apr 2011 | 0 comments

2011 Internet Security Threat Report Identifies Increased Risks for SMBs
Kevin Haley, Director, Symantec Security Technology and Response

Small businesses have flexibility that can provide them with a competitive edge in today’s Internet-based market. And, with ever more business being conducted online, keeping your sensitive information safe is more critical than ever.

Hackers do not care what the size of your business is. They only care if they can get past your defenses and relieve you of your valuables. What hackers do like about a small business is that they tend to have more money in the bank than an end-user and less cyber defenses than a larger company. And these hackers are no longer limited to highly skilled computer geeks. Leveraging easily available attack toolkitseven a relative novice can infect your computers and extract...

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