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For a successful business, you need a viable business idea, the skills to make it work and the funding. Discover whether your idea has what it takes.

Forming your business correctly is essential to ensure you are protected and you comply with the rules. Learn how to set up your business.

Advice on protecting your wellbeing, self-confidence and mental health from the pressures of starting and running a business.

Learn why business planning is an essential exercise if your business is to start and grow successfully, attract funding or target new markets.

It is likely you will need funding to start your business unless you have your own money. Discover some of the main sources of start up funding.

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Businesses are required to comply with a wide range of business laws. We introduce the main rules and regulations you must comply with.

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Some businesses need a high street location whilst others can be run from home. Understand the key factors from cost to location, size to security.

Your employees can your biggest asset. They can also be your biggest challenge. We explain how to recruitment and manage staff successfully.

It is likely your business could not function without some form of IT. Learn how to specify, buy, maintain and secure your business IT.

Few businesses manage the leap from start up to high-growth business. Learn what it takes to scale up and take your business to the next level.

Cyber crime threatens small firm survival

1 September 2020

Research shows that three out of five small businesses close their doors within six months after falling victim to a cyber-attack.

Small businesses are being actively targeted by cyber criminals and many are completely unprepared, NordVPN has warned. Its study of the scale of the threat has found that small businesses are the least prepared for a cyber-attack.

According to a report by Verizon, so far in 2020, 28% of data breaches have involved small businesses, and only 14% of those were adequately prepared to defend themselves. In the UK, there are 5.8 million small private sector businesses with up to 49 employees.

Alarmingly, research by the National Cyber Security Alliance has found that 60% of small companies go out of business within six months of being hacked. Meanwhile, the World Economic Forum has said that cyber-attacks, data fraud and the widespread shift to remote working are the most likely technological risks to businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Juta Gurinaviciute, chief technology officer at NordVPN Teams, said: "It is frightening to see such important economic drivers lagging behind when it comes to adopting strategies for fighting threats. Today, SMEs can be considered the new big target for attacks, yet cyber crime prevention is often neglected within their environment. With millions of employees working remotely, workers are accessing company data without the safety of a fortified corporate network. This has made them easy targets for hackers and scammers."

NordVPN recommends these actions to help small firms to protect their company data:

  • Carry out a risk assessment, offer security training to staff and make an incident plan;
  • Ensure all devices are protected with strong passwords or biometric identification;
  • Devices should operate on a platform that can be remotely tracked and deactivated in the event of loss or theft;
  • Employee passwords should be unique and changed regularly, preferably using a password manager;
  • Only secure virtual private network (VPN) connectivity should be allowed for remote access;
  • Only whitelisted IP addresses or device IDs should be allowed to access systems;
  • Treat every email with zero trust;
  • Keep servers, workstations and devices up-to-date;
  • Make back-ups and keep them offline;
  • Install antivirus software, anti-malware, anti-spyware and firewall software to detect and eliminate threats.

Written by Rachel Miller.