What Marketers Need to Know About Cybersecurity Management
Some of the most common cybersecurity threats to digital marketing professionals are when hackers attempt to gain access to a company’s social media account.
Thereby putting the company’s reputation at risk especially if the company operates in the financial services space.
Cybersecurity is the continuous process of protecting one’s network access and subsequent manipulation from cybersecurity threats either from external or internal sources. Information security is crucial to digital marketing professionals because their work entails having sensitive information about companies that they do not wish to share. It is, therefore, important for digital marketers to uphold precaution as part of their work. Some of the most common cybersecurity threats to digital marketing professionals are when hackers attempt to gain access to a company’s social media account thereby putting the company’s reputation at risk especially if the company operates in the financial services space.
Prevention of malware attacks
Malware is a software that is created to disrupt or damage the system so as to gain access to a system. There are many types of malware but the most common threat to digital marketers is spyware, it can be installed into a computer and records keystrokes, email passwords, user details like credit cards and other data is sent to the hackers remotely. Ransomware is another kind of commonly used malware that takes control of the system and encrypts data within the target’s servers enabling cybercriminals to demand money in exchange for decrypting of the data. This is a very prominent form of attack and was experienced in Britain in 2018 when wanna cry malware was used to attack the NHS encrypting all patient data. It resulted in the cancellation of appointments. The hackers demanded payment to decrypt patient information. Malware can be prevented by getting the best firewalls and anti-malware software. The key is to update the anti-malware software regularly. The digital marketing professional should also be careful not to click on emails from unknown senders.
Security on WordPress should be Updated Regularly.
WordPress being the most popular content management system is a big target for hackers as they are familiar with its features. More than seventy per cent of all WordPress sites does not have optimizations for security. Hackers are interested in WordPress sites so as to take control of email accounts and send spam email through phishing. They can then use your email to gain access to credentials of your contact list, especially clients in your email as your network will willingly respond to an email from you trusting it is you who is sending it. The best way to remedy the situation upon an attack would be to reset passwords and run a scan to detect malware. The web host can also be contacted for resolving issues, however, one should download newer versions of security plugins to avert against the risk of such an attack.
Enhancing of Information Security on Social Media
Social media accounts of companies are a major target for hackers who aren’t necessarily interested in account information but want to create havoc for the digital marketer and his/her clients. Most common nuisances would include changing the profile and posting offensive photos or statements that offend followers. They may also post dangerous links to collect customer information and send inappropriate messages to customers. This can be mitigated by setting strong passwords and updating the passwords regularly, it is recommended to have a password that is at least 12 characters long with lowercase and uppercase letters, numbers and at least one symbol.
Conclusion
It is important for digital marketing professionals to be vigilant and anticipate such attacks by taking measures to prevent such attacks from happening. This can be done by having a firewall installed to protect the network whilst constantly updating the security features of the computers system such as web security anti-malware software and the like. The digital marketing professional should also change passwords regularly and avoid using a shared computer to log in to the company network.
