Business Continuity: What Steps to Take After a Data Breach

News about cybersecurity breaches shows up often and it is affecting millions of people every time. Should you or a loved one become a victim, knowing what should be done is vital. This is a proactive measure to ensure that you can protect yourself, your loved ones and your company. Here is a step-by-step guide that you can take to minimize or avoid loss, and ensure business continuity despite a breach.

Business Continuity Steps to Take After a Data Breach

Stay Calm and Act Strategically

To start with, relax and do not be scared. Being on the receiving end of a data breach is not a joke but panicking will not help either. Being able to remain calm helps you make better judgement and allows you to do what needs to be done, quicker. 

Freeze or Alert Your Credit

Next, safeguard your financial identity. One of the most important things to do is to freeze your credit report. This prevents criminals from creating more accounts under your name or your business. You can do this by getting in touch with the three credit bureaus and the request to freeze your credit report. Alternatively, if a freeze seems too confining to you, you can also try using a fraud alert instead. This informs lenders to double-check identities, and be alert for stolen identity information. This provides an added security measure and helps with financially secured business continuity.

Monitor and Secure Your Financial Data

After reporting the fraud or freezing your credit report, you can’t sit on your laurels yet. Monitoring financial activity regularly is as important. Watch out for weekly credit reports, credit scores, and even credit card statements. Always coincide every transaction with printed or personal records and if you think that it has been compromised in any way, file a report immediately!

Moreover, it is also critically important to change your passwords regularly. This must be done not jut to the compromised account but on all accounts with the same password. For this purpose, it is best to make use of a password manager. The best password managers that can create good passwords, as well as inform you that some passwords have been leaked are 1Password, Dashlane, or Keeper. Use this for both personal and company accounts as part of your business continuity measures.

Send Out Notice of Breach and Stay Vigilant

Additionally, make sure that your employees, business partners, suppliers and consumers know about your being a victim of a breach. This will make them counter check with you and your business all their transactions to keep possible scams away. Check on reports of suspicious business transactions that are made or attempted to be done under your name. 

Reduce Exposure

Lastly, ensure you do not have any more dormant accounts with your personal or business  information on them. The lesser number of accounts, the lesser the possibility of getting your information hacked. Be vigilant and use two-factor authentication, updating the software, and being informed on security measures.

Get Professional Help

Business continuity and disaster recovery are very important aspects in every cybersecurity protocol. Ensure that this is in place and protocols are effective. Here at EB Solutions, we make sure that aside from detection and protection against threats, your company can continue operation in case of a breach. Hence, schedule a consultation today and find out about what we can do for your business.

Call now!

Business Continuity