If you have watched or listened to the news in the past few weeks, the various news outlets have been warning all of us who use wireless routers to RESET THEM. Cyber attacks on the “little guys” are a fact of life now.

As more large corporations beef up their firewall and internet security, hackers are increasingly turning to us little guys. You can say, what do they want with my little company? And you would be right. It’s not necessarily your data they want, rather its the ability to network several small networks together for their use.

We have our own checklist for Network Security, but for the purpose of introducing you to the topic, we are going to use the Network Security Checklist from Cisco :

“Network Security Checklist

Many small and medium-sized businesses do not have adequate network security. Here’s how to make sure you do.

Now more than ever, you depend on your network for your most important business operations, such as communication, inventory, billing, sales, and trading with partners. Yet up to now, you might have held off on protecting your network, for several reasons:

Network security might seem too complex, and tackling it might seem like too much work. But you can take a step-by-step approach as described in the checklist below, and then get an outside consultant to help you complete your security plan.
You might think network security is an expense that won’t help your business grow. Instead of thinking about network security as a technical concern, consider it a business continuity issue. Networks have become a basic part of doing business today, making security planning as important as sales and marketing.
You may believe that smaller companies are less likely to be a target of attacks. But as large companies beef up their network security, hackers are increasingly focusing on small and medium-sized businesses.

General Security Planning Tips

The following tips can help you develop and win support for an effective network security plan:

Focus on return on value rather than return on investment. Consider the harm a network security breach could do to your business, such as lost revenue or customer litigation.
Never assume that network attacks will come only from outsiders. Your employees can accidentally create security vulnerabilities, and disgruntled or former employees can cause considerable damage.
Don’t be tempted to confront security concerns with a piecemeal approach rather than a single, unified strategy that protects your whole network.
Work with others in your company to develop and roll out security strategies, focusing on technology, training, and physical site security with tools like surveillance cameras.
Find the right balance between security and usability. The more secure your network is, the more difficult it can be to use.