Is your small business easier to hack than Hollywood?
The Knowledge@Wharton podcast recently discussed HBO’s data breach going so far as to compare it in potential size and scope with the 2014 Sony Pictures hack.
Although most media outlets are focusing on the damage HBO could face from leaked scripts or episodes, far worse damage could be caused by the hackers’ discovery of HBO administrator passwords, emails, cast personal information and other data that would prove embarrassing to the studio.
Reportedly the hackers that breached HBO tried unsuccessfully for a full six months before gaining access. This raises a concerning question.
If a hacker can hold HBO or Sony Pictures captive, how hard is it to hold an SMB sized company captive?
Odds are your business is not an overtly attractive target like a big Hollywood studio with lots of money and data. But everyone is a target.
Compared to larger enterprises, small businesses are disproportionately affected by disasters that involve financial or security concerns.
What Can a Small Business Do to Be More Secure?
A Unified Threat Management (UTM) solution is quickly becoming the new normal even for businesses on the small side of the SMB spectrum. UTM products typically include firewall features combined with network intrusion detection/prevention (IDS/IPS), a content filter, and anti-virus/anti-spam software at the gateway layer.
Most UTM products are expensive, require you to purchase specialty hardware and are overly complex to build then manage.
With ClearOS running on a general-purpose X86 server you can protect your network, devices and users without a lot of headache or expense. (Hint: for small businesses we recommend HPE’s Gen10 MicroServer that ships preloaded with ClearOS.) A small investment now in time and money can prevent serious problems in the future.
Through its built-in ClearOS Marketplace, you can customize a ClearOS-based UTM deployment to perfectly fit your needs by selecting from a list of more than 100 Cloud, Server, Network and Gateway apps.
As a ClearOS user, you’ll also have exclusive access to the Gateway.Management tentpole Marketplace app adding additional layers to your UTM deployment. Gateway.Management is a ground-breaking content filter and egress controller that uses advanced DNS filtering and machine learning-based whitelisting to protect your business under a unique zero-trust model.
Try it Out
You can build a full enterprise-grade UTM solution right now by downloading ClearOS and using all of the ClearOS Business edition features free for 30 days.