The Dark Web: How to Protect Your Small Business

STAT: THE DARK WEB GENERATES AT LEAST $500,000 PER DAY FROM ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES  

Most small business owners can probably agree that there are plenty of things that keep them up at night, risks that threaten to interrupt or crumble business operations — losing a good employee, unexpected financial burdens, a lawsuit or, most recently, a global pandemic.

What Is the Dark Web?  

The Dark Web is often known as a place used for illegal criminal activity. It is a hidden universe contained within the “Deep Web” — a sublayer of the internet that is hidden from conventional search engines. Search engines like Google, BING and Yahoo only search .04% of the indexed or “surface” internet — while the other 99.96% of the Web consists of databases, private academic and government networks and the Dark Web. The Dark Web is estimated to be 550 times larger than the surface Web and growing! Because you can operate anonymously, the Dark Web holds a wealth of stolen data and illegal activity. 

Could Your Confidential Data Be on the Dark Web? 

Are you aware of the confidential data that is being made available on the  Dark Web? The Dark Web is real. Digital credentials, such as usernames and passwords, connect you and your employees to critical business applications, as well as online services. Those usernames and passwords represent the keys to the kingdom for malicious attackers. Criminals who know how to penetrate a company’s defenses can easily steal hundreds, or even thousands, of credentials at a time. Unfortunately, that’s why your digital credentials are among the most valuable assets found on the  Dark Web. 

As a business owner, it is crucial that you are more aware of growing threats and that you are armed with the tools necessary to protect yourself, your family, your business and our national security. 

What Happens to Stolen Information on the Dark Web?  

If cybercriminals are to get their hands on your compromised credentials they can send spam from email accounts, deface web properties or host malicious content, install malware, compromise other accounts using the same credentials, steal your identity, create a data breach, etc. — unfortunately, the list goes on.  

If My Personal Data Is Found on the Dark Web, Can It Be Removed? 

Once the data is posted for sale within the Dark Web, it is quickly copied and distributed (re-sold or traded) to a large number of cybercriminals, within a short period of time. It is generally improbable to remove data that has been dispersed within the Dark Web. Individuals whose personally identifiable information, or PII, has been discovered on the Dark Web are encouraged to enroll in an identity and credit monitoring service immediately. 

How to Protect Your Business and Secure Your Assets

A cyberattack threatens financial loss, business disruption and reputation damage all at once. IT services providers, such as Verity IT, take securing your network seriously. It’s their job to ensure that you are informed of ALL the security risks you face. Attacks on SMBs are on the rise and can pack a devastating blow. While there is always a risk that attackers will compromise a company’s systems through advanced attacks, most data breaches exploit common vectors such as known vulnerabilities, unpatched systems and unaware employees. Only by implementing a suite of tools including: monitoring, data leak prevention, multifactor authentication, employee security awareness training and others — can an organization protect their business from the perils of the Dark Web. 

Cyberthreats are real. 61% of businesses reported a cyberattack in the last year. They don’t just happen to someone else — they can happen to you. This poses the question, does your business have a cyber readiness plan? 

Security Awareness Training

The best way for a business to protect its employees and its data is through implementing Security Awareness Training. Human error is a major factor in cybercrime and employees can jeopardize security by simply browsing infected websites and downloading bad software without even knowing it!

With Verity IT’s Security Awareness Training it’s simple to personalize, automate, integrate, analyze and improve your cyber culture — the way that works best for your business and your employees.  

Dark Web Monitoring 

With  Dark Web monitoring, Managed Services Providers, such as Verity IT, are able to identify, analyze and proactively monitor for your organization’s compromised or stolen employee and customer data.  Dark Web monitoring leverages a combination of human and artificial intelligence that scours botnets, criminal chat rooms, blogs, websites and bulletin boards, Peer to Peer networks, forums, private networks and other black-market sites 24/7, 365 days a year to identify stolen credentials and other personally identifiable information (PII). 

To get a jump start on protecting your business from the Dark Web, schedule your Dark Web scan with Verity IT today! It's simple — visit Verity IT at https://verity-it.com/dark-web-scan-offer/ and complete the form! To get your Dark Web scan for FREE, use the promo code: FREETNP!  In no time, you will learn how they can proactively keep you and your credentials OUT of the Dark Web! 

 *This service is not provided by TransNational Payments, rather a third party IT solutions provider.