How White Hat Hackers Can Protect Your Business, when you speak of hackers, the image that pops up into the minds of a majority of individuals is that of a shady individual who makes a living out of penetrating into computer networks illegally. However, what a majority of the people don’t realize is that there are a number of white hat hackers as well, who are in a constant struggle against the black hat hackers.
These ethical hackers have got a lot to offer to the cyber security systems of businesses. Here are some of the manners in which white hat hackers can be beneficial to your business:
Transition of Information to Cloud Based Systems
With the progress of science and technology, businesses have started the trend of moving their information to cloud-based systems, owing to the various benefits that such platforms have got to offer. From IT outsourcing to virtualization, businesses have adopted a number of trends, in order to keep up with the competition.
However, this transition to cloud based systems, in particular, and overreliance on technology, in general, have radically increased the threat of cyber attacks that businesses have got to contend with.
Before making the transition of information to a cloud based system, a business needs to be assured of the fact that the cloud system isn’t prone to falling into the hands of hackers. This is where the ethical hackers come into the picture.
Ethical hackers will ensure that your business is able to leverage the gifts of the latest technology while keeping in touch with the complex security requirements that have become a necessity for businesses today. The techniques and tactics of hackers are evolving with every passing day, mandating for the businesses to consult such individuals (read: white hat hackers) who know the tricks of the trade.
Constant Risk of Cyber Attacks
Regardless of whether a business is utilizing cloud technology or not, the fact of the matter is that every business is prone to cyber attacks, nowadays. Banks, for instance, are one of the major targets of the cyber attacks from hackers and need to spend millions of dollars yearly for the purpose of not only protecting their money, but the sensitive customer data as well.
One of the worst forms of hacking is the one that involves sensitive customer data as the casualty. Adobe Systems faced a data hack, a few years ago, that aimed to steal the sensitive data of, approximately, 209 million of the company’s customers.
When you consider how even the big businesses and companies—such as Adobe Systems—are unable to do anything about the threat of cyber attacks, it seems to be high time for businesses to mobilize white hack hackers for the protection of their systems and networks.
In order to resist the attacks of hackers, one needs to think like a hacker and this is, exactly, what the ethical hackers have got to offer. For businesses, it is better to give permission to an ethical hacker to frequently hack into their networks for the purpose of highlighting security risks rather than to do nothing and remain at the mercy of illegal hackers.
Testing the Effectiveness of Security Measures
When you consider the high standards of security that need to be matched in the business environment of today, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that all businesses are implementing their own versions of security systems that might be able to serve their needs better. Having said that, the only way for a business to know the true effectiveness of its security system, is to experience an actual attack from a capable hacker.
The price of having an ineffective security system, under such a scenario, would be too steep, considering your entire system, network and business would be at risk.
White hat hackers offer a way out from such situations. The ethical hackers will offer you a chance to have the metal of your security system tested, in a controlled environment, without the risk of significant losses.
These ethical hackers can comment on matters such as the security measures that are effective, the security measures that need to be improved and the security measures that offer nothing of value in the fight against the dangerous illegal hackers. Such insight into its security system will be nothing short of gold dust for any business, for what else could you possibly need to devise a system that’s truly impenetrable?
Preparing for Cyber Attacks
Speaking of businesses that handle sensitive data from customers, the fact of the matter is that they are prone to severe attacks from hackers. While the bigger businesses can deal with such threats by spending a few million dollars every now and then, it’s the smaller businesses that are, truly, at the mercy of these illegal hackers, owing to how they don’t have millions of dollars to throw around.
Considering the problems of capital that the smaller businesses usually have to contend with, the fact that they are unable to cover all of their bases against hackers shouldn’t come as a surprise.
The white hat hackers can accomplish wonders for such smaller businesses, owing to how they can ensure that the security budgets of such businesses are spent in the best possible manner. When you consider how cyber attacks can do as much damage to a business as a great fire, you can think of white hat hackers as similar to the person in charge of preventing such fires from happening.
The ethical hackers will not only show these smaller businesses how prone they are to hacking attacks, but they will also show them how they can be best prepared, within their limited budgets, against them.
When you take it all into perspective, the need for businesses—especially the smaller ones—to consult white hat hackers appears to be urgent and undeniable. However, it’s nothing short of a surprise to see that a majority of the businesses fail to understand all that ethical hackers have got to offer and deny their services by terming them as an “added cost”.
Such businesses need to realize that no cost is greater than the cost that needs to be paid after a black hat hacker has brought them down to their knees!