A good reputation complete with trust from customers is one of the hardest things for a business to earn but it is also one of the easiest to lose. Through recent data breaches we have seen companies such as Target and Anthem quickly lose customer trust and suffer damage to their company value as a request of a cyber-attack. While social media is an extremely valuable tool for marketing and sales it also creates an opportunity for the company to get hacked and cause potentially unrepairable damage.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that its Twitter and YouTube accounts were compromised. This malicious attack not only put CENTCOM at risk but also endangered the security of their 100,000 followers. If a government agency that handles classified data could have a lapse in security, it is likely that other companies and organizations could experience similar attacks. This is why it is essential that all companies make social media security a priority.
What is at Risk?
All companies are concerned about compromising their confidential data but the implications of a social media attack goes far beyond just the data breach. A single cyber-attack can ruin a hard-earned online reputation that took years to establish. In addition, attacks can break customer trust which is an essential part of any business’ success. After a breach, a company’s social media accounts could potentially start sharing malicious links, posts containing spam, and content containing false information about the company. A security breach can also provide hackers access to customer’s personal information. The protection of social media accounts is an all-encompassing process that will protect a company’s followers, data, and reputation. The first step to protecting your company is to understand the most common social media security dangers.
The Three Most Common Social Media Security Dangers
- Social Engineering is a type of attack that manipulates people into willingly providing confidential information to hackers. While few people may fall for an e-mail from the Prince of Nigeria asking them for their bank account information, it is not unusual for individuals to fall for slightly more believable social engineering tactics. For example, it is not a stretch for an employee to share a password with a new acquaintance in hopes that the friend will be able to provide input about a work project if he or she could access password protected files just this once. It is important for a company to be aware of this type of attack and be overly cautious of any suspicious e-mails or request for personal information.
- Employees. All companies worry about disgruntled employees sabotaging their social media sites, however many breaches conducted by employees are not intentional. Cyber criminals often use downloaded mobile apps to hide malware or access the user’s private information, including access codes to a company’s network. Malware can also be easily hidden in shortened URLs which are very common on social media sites such as Twitter due to its 140 character limit. If an employee accidently clicked on any of these links both personal and corporate data could be exposed to hackers. The best protection for any company is to have a clear social media policy as well as a mechanism to enforce that policy. Employees are often encouraged to represent a company via social media but are not provided with any guidelines or parameters. It is important to take the time to educate employees on the company’s social media initiatives and what is acceptable. In addition, it is essential for any company to have a tool in place that will monitor all that activity and take a proactive approach to preventing social media malfeasance.
- Passwords are always a topic of conversation when it comes to security. Common advice is to change passwords frequently and use a combination of letters, numbers and symbols, but sometimes a good password may not be enough. The U.S. authorities investigating the CENTCOM breach said it was possible the breach happened through simple password guessing. Having a unique password for each social media account and a mechanism to lock accounts where unusual activity has occurred is essential in order to keep your social media sites safe.
Social SafeGuard is dedicated to helping companies across industry sectors protect their social media assets through technology solutions and regulatory compliance. Cyber criminals are motivated, educated and have access to sophisticated tools, so you should too. Social SafeGuard provides access to top security tools through our trademarked app. Our expert staff is ready to help you get started. Contact us today.
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