Keep Out

Cybercrooks have a new target: you.

1 | 2 NEXT

Reminiscing about the good old days is not a pastime that owners of fast-growing businesses typically indulge in. But when it comes to the rapidly evolving world of technology security, it's hard to blame entrepreneurs for feeling nostalgic. The good old days were merely months ago, and they were a time of relative tranquillity for small companies.

That's because during that not-so-distant first wave of cybercrime, the bad guys spent most of their efforts stalking big game. "Originally, it was these geeky guys trying to hack into large institutions to brag about it to their friends," says Uday Shetgeri, senior vice president of electronic fraud at Frost Bank, a regional bank in San Antonio. "Now the hackers are finding it difficult to break into big businesses. They find it more lucrative to go after the small companies that don't have the resources to defend themselves."

Indeed, the organized cybercrime syndicates that have sprung up in recent years couldn't care less about burnishing their egos with tales of daring digital exploits. Instead, they are looking to steal information--usually personal data on customers--that they can convert into money on the black market, or use to purchase products they have no intention of paying for. And they are capable of commandeering hundreds of thousands of computers to randomly probe the Internet or wireless networks for weak security points. Small companies, it turns out, represent the path of least resistance.

How scary is it out there? The SANS Institute, an industry group that tracks computer security threats, found that it takes an average of just 20 minutes for an unprotected computer to become infected with a potentially debilitating virus, compared with 40 minutes in 2003. And the losses can be considerable. The Computer Security Institute, another industry group, and the FBI recently surveyed 313 organizations and found that computer crime cost companies an average of $168,000 in 2006. "If you have any online presence, no matter how small you are, they can find you," says Marty Lindner, a senior member of the tech staff at the Computer Emergency Response Team, or CERT, the Internet security research lab at Carnegie Mellon University. "And your money is as good as anyone else's."

The good news is that you don't have to become an expert in security technology to protect your business. Nor does the technology have to break the bank. Security vendors have put together a number of fairly comprehensive software packages to handle everything from worms and viruses to spam and phishing, the e-mail scams that trick consumers into divulging their account information. Experts recommend these "unified threat management" solutions over buying security software à la carte. Some offerings, such as McAfee's Total Protection for Small Businesses, are subscription-based packages that are offered as a service and cost about $35 per user a year.

1 | 2 NEXT

Try a RISK-FREE Issue of Inc. Today!

Renew | Contact Us | Current Issue

Select Services