When setting up your business infrastructure, getting all your tools and applications up and running is often your number one concern. Then again, focusing on that alone is actually not enough. You also need to focus on your infrastructure’s security needs to avoid devastating consequences in the future.
It doesn’t matter if your business is a startup or not. The goal is to prevent malicious actors from taking down your business. So, in this guide, we list down some security tips from www.itproactive.com to help protect your office network.
Tip #1: Establish secure connections.
When connecting to remote servers, it is important to establish a secure communication channel. To make it possible, use the Secure Shell (SSH) Protocol, which encrypts all data being transmitted in the channel.
The SSH Protocol uses port 22 by default. Because everybody knows this, it is a smart move to change this detail to reduce the chances of server attacks. You may choose to use any port number between 1024 and 32,767.
Tip #2: Use SSH keys for authentication.
Instead of using a password, you can use a pair of SSH keys to authenticate an SSH server. These combinations of numbers and letters carry more bits compared to traditional passwords, making them less prone to being cracked.
A pair of SSH key consists of a private and a public key. While the public key is shared with users, the private key is often kept secure. So, when a connection is established, the server will first ask for evidence that the user has the private key before granting access.
Tip #3: Use VPNs and private networks.
Another way to keep networks and communications secure is to use virtual private networks or VPNs. Unlike open networks, VPNs are less susceptible to attacks because only selected users can access the network.
Private networks, on the other hand, use a private IP to establish a communication channel between servers. This allows them to exchange data without having to worry about exposing them to the public.
Tip #4: Monitor all login attempts.
The use of an intrusion prevention software to monitor all login attempts is a great way to protect your server against attacks. Most often, brute force attacks use a trial-and-error method, trying every possible number and letter combination to spy on a network.
An intrusion prevention software checks and monitors all log files and identifies any suspicious login attempt. If the number of attempts has already exceeded the norm, it will block the IP address for a certain span of time.
Tip #5: Set password requirements.
To further boost your server security, you must set password rules and requirements that should be followed by all members of the organization.
For example, do not allow empty passwords. Set a minimum password length and establish a lockout policy. Establish a force session timeout policy for inactivity and enable two-factor authentication.
Tip #6: Establish a password expiration policy.
When setting password requirements for users, you should also set an expiration date for passwords. Depending on the level of security needed by your organization, set the password to expire after a couple of weeks or months.
Tip #7: Keep software up to date.
Making sure your software is up to date is a crucial step in keeping your infrastructure safe from cybercriminals. Attackers already know the weak points of outdated software. Don’t allow them to take advantage of these loopholes and cause harm to your system.
You may opt to automatically update the software to ensure no updates are missed. However, it is worth noting that allowing your system to make automatic changes may be a bit risky. After all, you never know the effect of an update to your production environment.
Tip #8: Set up a firewall.
You can further secure your server by setting up a firewall to restrict access. The role of the firewall is to restrict, filter, and allow access according to the user’s privileges. Configure it to restrict certain services, except those that are required by the server.
Tip #9: Back up your server regularly.
Make sure you store encrypted backups of your server data using a cloud solution so you can easily retrieve your data and files in the event that something goes wrong.
Wrapping Up
After reading the tips above, you should be more confident in your infrastructure’s security. Most of the tips should be done during the initial set up phase, while others must be done regularly. Now, if you are not that familiar with the ins and outs of your network infrastructure, entrust the job to experts. Unless you have significant experience managing networks, you should hire Professional IT firm.
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