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High-speed connectivity opens firms to hackers
Browsing the internet at a Nairobi cyber cafe. Small businesses are at risk of increased cyber attacks. Photo/FILE
He says a company’s email address can be spoofed or “forged” and used by a hacker to send all the company’s clients, offers of an illegal sale.
Such an email can cause a lot of mistrust especially when such clients respond and order goods or services.
There is also the fear of home-grown cyber criminals and as Kenya becomes more dependent on electronic transactions for day-to-day business credit card and ID theft will also rise as Kenyans embrace online transactions.
With no government framework to work on how and when to defend the cyber space, Kenyan businesses have to incur the full cost of preventing cyber attacks.
The exact cost cannot be estimated because it depends on several factors, including business espionage or attacks intended to finish off the network?
It could also be a mock attack to assure clients that their data and information is safe.
But failure to mitigate is even more costly than a cyber attack that leads to data and information loss or loss of productivity.
Mr Ikua says employing IT security experts can be expensive for small businesses.
Instead he advises them to engage consultants and should also make use of shared services that can make their capital expenditure lower.
First, they need to start by getting proper information on IT Security by acknowledging that they too are vulnerable to cyber criminals.
They can come up with a policy with this kind of information.
It is, however ,advisable to consult with an expert when drafting such policy.
It should form the foundation of the business’s overall security strategy by drawing out the procedures for implementing and embracing Internet technology.
Lastly and most importantly, SMEs need to carry out vulnerability assessments and penetration tests on their network infrastructure, web portals and applications.
It is through this that the owners can find the loopholes or weaknesses in their systems before the hackers find it.
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