Guard your data
Cybersecurity experts talk about network threats
Daily attacks are the reality online.
Hackers of various sorts are constantly probing the defenses of computers and networks, with the intent to steal, destroy and generally make mischief. So if any individual or organization wants to keep its data safe, they have to invest in security systems for their computers.
Local business men and women heard about strategies to beef up cybersecurity at a Lunch and Learn event at the Texarkana Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday.
“At every moment, your data is threatened by zeroday attacks, viruses and spyware, DDos attacks (attacks that deny you access to your own sites), phishing attacks, even clumsy moves by negligent employees,” said Kelly Butler, sales engineer for Kinetic by Windstream.
“Not only can this cause damage to your data, or even the physical systems of your computer network, these attacks can be costly in a monetary sense. They can result in criminal exposure, loss of business, being held hostage by ransomware and more. Bottom line is, you have to protect your network.”
Butler recommended being proactive in safeguarding your computers and your data.
“First, you have to have a firewall,” he said. “Then, your systems need to monitor for traffic outside the norm. You need to be set up for web content filtering. Set yourself up for DDos mitigation, that is, your network provider should monitor the network and put suspicious traffic through a scrubbing process. In addition, filter your email. And train your employees and keep them informed on the tricks, like phishing attempts and the like.”
This seminar was present
ed by Kinetic by Windstream at the Lunch and Learn seminar Wednesday at the Chamber of Commerce, intended to educated attendees on some of the computer network threats that exist in the cyber age.
Jerry Gill, owner of the local Taco Tico as well as a partner in American Security in Shreveport, Louisiana, recommended a fiber optic network for those who use a large amount of data in their systems.
“We use a lot of security cameras in our operations,” he said. “With the fiber optic network, we can monitor all the information coming from our cameras in real time. Our cameras record video and most of them also record audio. Due to the fiber optic setup, we don’t have issues with lagging or buffering. To date, the network has never gone down. And we can monitor it all at a distance on our portable devices.”