Most companies deal with data every day – customer, inventory, financial and other information are largely stored in a digital format, and protecting this like any other asset is crucial to maintaining safety and security for yourself, your business and the people to whom it caters.
Not all consumers are aware of the danger, however, and those that are may not be taking the proper steps to ensure this information is kept safe from intentional and accidental loss. Those who do try and protect themselves may not be aware of other ways they can safeguard their data. Seeing as the month of June is National Internet Safety Month, you can increase your brand visibility with promotional USB drives while helping to protect your clients and showing that your company is one that truly cares for the community.
Knowing about cyber crime
The 2011 Data Breach Investigations Report, released by Verizon in connection with the U.S. Secret Service and the Dutch High Tech Crime Unit, found that more than 90 percent of attacks were caused by outside attackers and hacks, where half of all successful attempts were either from a direct individual’s attempts or through a malware attack. A majority of the time these incidents could have been easily avoided with even the simplest security precautions and were often not complex in nature.
To help customers understand these threats and how to protect themselves from them in the future, your company can give out promotional flash drives imprinted with your company’s logo and loaded with information on proper internet security and safety measures for internal data.
Promoting Awareness
Not only can these promotional items help educate individuals on how to keep their data safe, you can also get involved with larger industries this way and expand business by showing them the need and benefits of proper data security.
A big company may feel impervious to an outside attempt on data security, but in the last 12 months alone, a number of government and high-profile businesses have fallen victim to data loss or theft. According to Health Care Finance News, some of the biggest targets have been in the medical industry, where electronic health records and other electronic file reliance may make them even larger targets in the future.
The Utah Department of Health, Emory Healthcare in Georgia and the South Carolina Department of Health are three of the biggest victims. These offices have all suffered data loss or theft in some cases affecting more than 750,000 patients and subsequently potentially millions of dollars in personal and business damages.
Spreading the message
“Everyone – youth and adults alike – can benefit from learning better Internet safety practices and should become more aware of potential threats,” said Michael Kaiser of the National Cyber Security Alliance. “We want all Internet users to understand that they have a shared responsibility in protecting themselves online and that safer practices online help protect everyone.”
Since about half of all Americans don’t feel safe online, it’s important to give them information to try and make them feel more confident with personal computer devices, especially in terms of younger people who may unintentionally harm themselves or other users. Using targeted promotional flash drives can help you teach your customers about the dangers of online information sharing, as well as help them protect their sensitive data from potential attacks and malware. You can also drive by example, protecting their information as well by taking steps to ensure data security before an attack occurs.