Many organizations that are non-natives to the digital realm make many cyber security mistakes that are very much problematic for them. Knowing about the common cyber security mistakes is important as it helps you analyze them and discuss them with the team. Knowing about them and how to avoid them can essentially help you save thousands of dollars in cost.

Passwords

The first common cyber security mistake revolves around passwords, and the first rule with passwords is to not use bad passwords. This sounds very simple, yet, many people end up creating weak passwords for important virtual locations. Weak passwords can be a base password that they use for all of their applications. People only tweak it slightly and incrementally each time they want to change their password.

These are all bad practices. You also have to avoid sharing your password with coworkers. This means that you should not use shared accounts. If you have a website and you have shared a generic account with everyone to log in, then this is a bad practice for a number of reasons. Firstly, you have no accountability of who is logging in, and it is hard to keep track of all suspicious activities.

It is best to have one account for each person that you want to give access to so that you have accountability of who is logging in. Making sure that each person has their own account will also mean that you can delete their account and make sure that no one gets affected.

Most companies that get hacked make the mistake of using the same password for most of their interfaces. If you encounter a data breach in one of your systems while you have the same password, you have to essentially change all the passwords across each account.

A great solution is to use online tools that manage your passwords. Some applications and tools also help you generate different passwords for each of the accounts you use and store them. All you have to do is create one password that helps provides you access to all the other passwords.

One good way of thinking about a good password is to think of it as a passphrase and not a password. This requires you to string together actual words to create a pass phrase. This can help you formulate a password that is not just secure but also easy to remember.  Nonetheless, setting strong passwords is not enough to protect your data.

Domain-Name Confusion

Many times, a worker will log in to the website and find that they cannot get it.  This causes them to panic and most of the times, this occurrence happens because the domain name has expired. You domain name is your website address or URL. When it boils down to it, people find out that there domain name has been purchased by someone else.  This is why it is very important to make sure that you own the domain name and have access to the registrar. This is important because the domain name will expire and put your website into jeopardy.

Many companies will have systems and algorithms that track all domains that have been used and they scope them up. If your domain expires, it is no longer your right and any other company can purchase it. Many times these organizations will charge companies hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars to sell your domain back to you.

The solution to keep this from happening to you requires you to check where the domain is hosted. Knowing the user name and password of your domain hosting service will help you keep all your data secured. If you feel that you do not have the time to keep track of your domain tracking, then you can simply hire a managed service provider to help you do that.

You should also make sure that you have the right login credentials of your account. Keep all your credentials updated. You also need to know when your domain is going to expire. Many times will purchase a domain for a specific time and then forget about it.

You may also have your card setup on the domains but later find out that it is not good after the five years. Again, having a good IT partner that handles your vulnerabilities will keep track of your domains longevity without you even realizing.

Falling Victim to Phishing and Spoofing

Phishing is when someone tries to convince you to send them personal information through text and email. This information can be your social security number, bank account information or more. Spoofing on the other hand is when an attacker poses as someone you know. Many times they can pose as an authority figure in your life.

The interesting thing about spoofing is that it reenacts someone that you are in recent contact with and someone that know. This is why you need to be very vigilant when you get an email or attempt of this kind, then you could also fall victim to this if you are not careful.

Spoofing techniques are used to phish information out of the target. Majority of the phishing attempts take shape in the form of emails that look very authentic. If you have a good email system, then these emails will go straight to your spam folder.

However, they can sometimes make their way through your inbox, especially if you are hosting your own email internally. The only solutions to avoiding this common cyber security mistake is to always double check and verify all emails that are asking you to release important credentials, even if they are from an authority figure that you know.

Seek Prescient Solutions to Avoid Mistakes

We, at Prescient Solutions help businesses realize common mistakes that could lead to drastic data breaches. Not only that, we also offer cyber security measures and services that are highly effective in ridding common errors.