Website Protection: 3 Reasons Why You Need a Trusted Partner

It's taken a while, but the Internet is now a marketing must-have for small- and mid-sized businesses in the United States.

SMBs are spending more on Internet marketing, and, according to an SMB Internet Marketing Survey, 37 percent of these SMBs increased their spend on Internet marketing yet again in 2015.

An SMB's website is a portal for the rest of the world to engage with the business. It's a vital link to customers, contacts, and new sales. That means no company can afford the risk of website downtime, both in terms of lost revenue or reputation damage through a data leak.

Many SMBs don't realize it, but the average small business loses more than $55,000 in revenue due to IT failures – including website downtime — each year.[1] Yet research suggests 97 percent of all sites worldwide are not sufficiently protected.[2]

SMBs need not -and should not — face ever-increasing cybersecurity risks alone. Security can make the difference between business success and failure. By partnering with a trusted web hosting service provider, SMBs can realize benefits at three key levels.

1. Accessing SSL Certificates Boosts Customer Assurance

The starting point for the secure exchange of data should be an SSL certificate. SSL, which stands for Secure Socket Layer, refers to a network protocol for the secure transmission of data. It encrypts the transfer of data and prevents unauthorised access, so that the sensitive information which belongs to your site's visitors, such as passwords, email addresses, or bank details, stays private and protected.

Small business owners will recognize the power of protection, but may fear the technical demands of security. The good news is that the best hosting providers offer certification as standard. 1&1, for example, provides SSL certificates by Symantec, an easy-to-activate solution for a safe web presence. Your business can display its certification and your customers can rest easy.

2. Focusing on Additional Security Features Keeps Threats Low

Staying on top of security concerns requires a proactive response. While SSL certification is a strong starting point for building a safe website, small business owners must focus on additional features that help keep the ever-evolving security threat at bay. Your trusted hosting partner will be key, helping your business protect employees and customers at all levels of interaction.

Opening dubious links in emails, for example, can leave your business open to the risk of malware and data theft. Look for a partner that uses SiteLock, which performs daily scans for malware and actively combs through your website to identify potential weaknesses. An antivirus tool such as Norton, meanwhile, will protect connected computers from viruses, worms, and Trojans.

3. Protecting Your Business in All Areas, Even Beyond Your Website

Defending your customers is not just about the front page of your website. As part of a cloud deployment, large amounts of your data will be held off-site in data centres. A strong partner will give small business owners the confidence to embrace the cloud. In its ISO 27001 certificated data centers, 1&1 protects information from Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks and employs powerful firewalls to protect information and assets.

A Content Delivery Network (CDN) analyses traffic and filters out harmful calls such as spam, SQL injection attacks, and excessive bot crawling. Using a CDN increases the security of your server, data, and used applications because attacks can be detected and dealt with early in the game.

As a final level of mitigation, geo-redundant data centres back up your information and are deployed automatically in the event of a fault or outage. Whatever the situation, you can be confident that your customers are always being served safely.

Your website has never been more important to your business. Partnering with a trusted web hosting service provides the best way to ensure your site is available, your data is protected, and your customers are happy.

[1] http://www.askbis.com/calculating-cost-downtime-business/

[2] 1and1 Blog -_Security campaign kick off_UK_final.docx http://blog.1and1.com/2016/05/19/safest-of-the-safe-11-starts-with-large-security-initiative/#page-content

Source: Website Protection: 3 Reasons Why You Need a Trusted Partner