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    Protecting Your Assets: A Cybersecurity Guide for Small Businesses
    Protecting Your Assets: A Cybersecurity Guide for Small Businesses
    Protecting Your Assets: A Cybersecurity Guide for Small Businesses
    Ebook139 pages1 hour

    Protecting Your Assets: A Cybersecurity Guide for Small Businesses

    By John A. Schaefer

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    About this ebook

    Small businesses make up over 90% of all businesses, and they account for nearly 50% of the gross domestic product.  Yet, other than the bad guys, there isn't a lot of focus on cybersecurity for small businesses.  This book aims to help small businesses learn what the bad guys are after, and how they can protect their businesses.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherEastvale Solutions Inc dba Eastvale Publishin
    Release dateJan 27, 2019
    ISBN9781950353019
    Protecting Your Assets: A Cybersecurity Guide for Small Businesses
    Author

    John A. Schaefer

    John A. Schaefer is a computer geek with over 30 years of experience in information technology, with a focus on cybersecurity. He's been doing this for so long, in fact, that cybersecurity wasn't even a word when he started. John isn't your typical geek, though. Having spent the majority of his professional career working for Fortune 50 companies, he knows that geek-speak doesn't go over very well in the boardroom. He has a rare ability for geeks: to explain complex technical information in ways that non-geeks can understand. He's been quoted in PC Week and The Wall Street Journal for some of his past projects, and was recently a guest speaker for a graduate level computer science class at Vanderbilt University. Talking to small business owners, John realized there's a need that's not being met for cybersecurity information. It's this void that led John to start Eastvale Cyber. Focused exclusively on small businesses and providing the information they need to improve their security without spending a fortune, John's goal is for Eastvale Cyber to become the most trusted source of cybersecurity information for small businesses.

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      Book preview

      Protecting Your Assets - John A. Schaefer

      cover-image, Protecting Your Assetsimage.pngimage-1.pngimage-2.pngimage-3.png

      

      image-4.png

      i

      EMBRACE THE GREY

      1

      HOW LONG HAS THIS BEEN GOING ON?

      2

      THE FORGOTTEN MAJORITY

      Misconceptions

      Easy Targets

      The Implications

      The Domino Effect

      3

      IT’S JUST A BUNCH OF WORDS

      Privacy, Security, and Anonymity

      Cybersecurity

      Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability

      Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Weaknesses

      Countermeasures, Impact, and Risk

      Risk Appetite and Risk Tolerance

      4

      THE INEVITABLE LIST

      1. Change All The Defaults

      2. Require Passwords

      3. Use Multi-Factor Authentication When Possible

      4. Keep All Software Up-To-Date

      5. Use Anti-Malware (Anti-Virus) Software

      6. Limit Access to Systems and Devices

      7. Create Separation of Duties

      8. Secure Your Files

      9. Backup Your Data

      10. Turn on Encryption

      11. Educate Employees

      12. Have Written Policies and Procedures

      13. Business Continuity Planning and Disaster Recovery

      14. Secure all Webpages, not just Login or Checkout

      15. Firewalls & Internet Security

      Case Study: WannaCry Ransomware

      5

      CHECKING THE BOXES

      Compliance ≠ Security

      The Tangled Web of Privacy Laws and Regulations

      European Union

      Brazil

      United States

      6

      A STRUCTURED APPROACH

      NIST Cybersecurity Framework

      How to use the NIST CSF

      Framework Core

      NIST CSF Functions

      NIST CSF Categories

      7

      CONTINUING THE JOURNEY

      Informational Resources for Small Business

      Get Involved

      The Stuff I Read

      A

      GLOSSARY

      B

      ENDNOTES

      i

      EMBRACE THE GREY

      Congratulations on taking a proactive step to increase your awareness and understanding of the biggest threats facing small businesses today.  I am, of course, talking about cybersecurity.

      Yes, I said it.  Cybersecurity.  Now take a deep breath and relax.  There’s no need to go running for your happy place, because cybersecurity isn’t something to be afraid of.  It’s when you don’t have it that you should be worried.

      I’m sure you’ve already figured out that this isn’t going to be your typical book on the topic.  First, it’s written in the first person.  I’ve found it’s easier to have a conversation than to lecture or judge.  Second, I am a computer geek - but please don’t hold that against me.  While I’ve had a long and varied career with Information Systems and Information Security, I’ve also learned a lot of non-geeky things along the way. 

      I have a passion for learning and sharing what I’ve learned.  And I have the ability to take technical topics and present them in such a way that they’re understandable and relatable by normal people that aren’t necessarily technical.  (Yes, I just implied that geeks aren’t normal - and I’m standing by that assertion.)

      As an example, I’m sure we’ve all seen news reports or read articles about cyber attacks by bad guys.  These stories usually have an expert that tells you exactly what you need to do or things that you must never do to stay safe and secure.  You’d think from listening to these reports that we live in a black-and-white world, and that cybersecurity is a one-size-fits-all proposition.

      It’s a lie.

      Do they know your line of business?  Do they know the risk tolerance of your organization?  There is no one-size-fits-all solution for cybersecurity.  Every organization is different - the type of data, appetite for accepting risk, visibility as a target, and many other considerations go into creating a secure environment.  Cybersecurity isn’t black-and-white.  I’m here to help you learn to embrace the grey areas.

      This book will assist small businesses in getting a better handle on cybersecurity.  Yes, there will be lists - because there are some fundamental things that everybody should be doing.  It’s not unlike changing the oil or rotating the tires on your car; preventive maintenance is part of the cost of ownership.

      1

      HOW LONG HAS THIS BEEN GOING ON?

      Early adopters of the Internet as a business tool gained a competitive advantage over those with a wait and see attitude.  While it took a leap of faith to make that move 25 years ago, those businesses were rewarded with a fertile market whose potential few could envision at the beginning.  As an example, Amazon.com was started in 1994 as an online bookstore and was based in Jeff Bezos’ garage.¹  In their 2017 fiscal year, Amazon.com sales were just shy of $178 billion.²

      Finding success is more difficult on the Internet today, but there are still examples such as Airbnb, Lyft, and Houzz.  These types of companies are referred to as disrupters because they challenge long established business models  They are also examples of something called a digital business.

      The term digital business has been around for a few years, but there is still disagreement on the exact meaning of the term.  When I use the term, I mean A digital business is one that uses technology as an advantage in its internal and external operations.³

      I may be cheating a little, because this definition means that nearly every business today is a digital business.  But in all honesty, there are very few companies that don’t use computers or the Internet for at least some part of their operations.  Whether it’s simply maintaining a website, conducting sales, or communicating with suppliers, it’s nearly impossible to conduct business today without using computers or technology to our advantage.

      Even setting aside the Internet, computers allowed companies to be more efficient, better manage inventory and resources, and reach a global audience that wasn’t possible until recently.

      Like most things, though, there is a darker side to these advancements.  Cybercriminals can break into unsecured computers and create chaos.  Whether it’s depleting bank accounts, creating fake online orders, or encrypting your information and demanding a ransom to recover it, the bad guys can attack from anywhere in the world with

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