October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month and there’s no better time to address the persistent threat of malicious cyber activity, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In an article from Christopher D. Roberti, senior vice president for cyber, intelligence and supply chain security policy for the organization, he says there are proactive steps companies can take that will significantly reduce their cyber risk.
In 2021, the FBI reportedly received nearly 850,000 reports of cyber crime with combined losses nearing $7 billion. Roberti says ransomware and business email compromise (BEC) are the most common cyber threats. He advises companies and individuals to:
- Enable multifactor authentication organization-wide and ensure strong passwords.
- Implement antivirus, antimalware or email filtering software for protection from known malicious activity.
- Regularly update and patch network software
- Warn employees about clicking on suspicious links in texts and emails.
- Consider moving networks to “zero trust architecture.”
