For those who may not have been aware, a few days ago was the 50th anniversary of the National Small Business Week in the U.S. This was a big deal for a host of reasons, and the celebration even drew President Obama as a keynote speaker.
Small business is big business. There are 28 million who account for 45 percent of total U.S. private payrolls. Many, if not most of them, derive their vitality stems from being online delivering and receiving services. Unfortunately, like their large enterprise cousins, being online has its risks, and SMBs have become prime targets for bad actors.
In fact, the statistics are disturbing. As various studies have pointed out:
Yet, in the face of what is a clear and present danger, other studies estimate that only 17 percent of SMBs take any measures to secure the data on personal devices. You read that correctly. Despite the mushrooming popularity of smartphones and tablets being used by SMBs to run their business, they are not taking necessary precautions which under a worst case scenario would cause them to close their doors.
In recognition of this disconnect, McAfee (News - Alert) has developed a 10-step security checklist, which can be seen in the embedded slide show. It starts with the facts about SMB vulnerabilities and then provides a series of recommendations that can save your company literally and figuratively.
While much of the above may seem like common sense, the fact that most SMBs remain unprotected despite being aware makes this information worth not just a view but a printout so it can serve as a physical visual reminder.