Due to a high rise in remote work, many SMEs and businesses prefer to shift to a secure and productive cloud-based platform. Microsoft 365 is one of the most popular because of its enhanced productivity and collaboration capabilities. But the threat of cyberattacks has become a major issue.
For organizations, keeping their crucial data safe has become the biggest concern, and every organization should prioritize data security to prevent breaches and protect digital assets. In this blog post, we’ll cover everything from why security practices are necessary to important security practices you need to follow. Let’s get started now!
- 1. Enable Multi-Factor Authentication
- 2. Backup and Recovery Planning
- 3. Software Up-to-Date
- 4. Protect your Data from Phishing Attacks
- 5. Audit Your Office 365 Environment
- 6. Team Awareness Training
- 7. Implement a Strong Password Policy
- 8. Create Data Loss Prevention Policy
- 9. Use a Separate Admin Account
Why Are Security Practices Important to Follow?
Security practices help every Microsoft 365 user to prevent their data potential loss. They are just like guards that keep your important data safe. Below are some common reasons why security practices are important:
- Data Protection: Protects critical company information and assets from cyberattacks and breaches.
- Legal and compliance requirements: Some organizations have specific data retention policies to meet industry regulations.
- Detect insider threats: Setting up security practices helps detect insider risks and threats.
- Employee Protection: These security policies also ensure employee safety and security of the physical location. These are designed to protect the rights of employees.
Important Security Practices that Organizations Should Follow
According to Varonis’ data security report, more than 30,000 websites are hacked every day. Another shocking data is that by 2023, the number of malware attacks worldwide is expected to reach 6.06 billion. These reports clearly state that even the data of big MNCs is not safe unless strict security guidelines are followed.
Therefore, it is important for the organization to take security seriously to avoid losing important data. Understanding the need for a strong security policy helps the entire organization avoid major losses. Here we have listed the essential practices to follow.
1. Enable Multi-Factor Authentication
Enable MFA, also known as two-step verification, to prevent unauthorized access. This step may be the best precaution for extra protection for high security accounts. Therefore, require MFA for all users so that even if the password is stolen, no unauthorized user can access the data without entering the code.
2. Backup and Recovery Planning
It’s important to regularly back up all your data and store it in a safe place to prevent data loss, damage, or corruption. For businesses of all sizes, implementing a rigorous data backup and recovery plan can reduce costs, mitigate cyber risk, maintain customer trust, and protect a company’s reputation. Follow the 3-2-1 backup rule to back up your data. This rule suggests that you make 3 copies of your data, store them on 2 different types of storage media, and save 1 copy in a completely offsite location.
3. Software Up-to-Date
Keeping software up-to-date is also a good security practice in Microsoft 365. It’s a simple yet effective way to protect your business from cyber threats and receive test updates, reminders, and more. This practice will make your software faster and more reliable.
4. Protect your Data from Phishing Attacks
With the increasing need for digitization, phishing attacks are one of the most common attacks nowadays. Therefore, it is very important to implement email security, MFA, anti-phishing technology, secured web gateways, team education, regular system updates and security checkups. It helps IT professionals protect business and personal data from unauthorized access and malware attacks.
5. Audit Your Office 365 Environment
With the help of the audit log, it is easy to detect all kinds of activities, such as unusual login times or accessing the data file from an unfamiliar location. It can ensure quick action if any suspicious thing is found. Daily checkup of audit logs is healthy for the 365 environment, thereby improving overall security posture.
6. Team Awareness Training
It is important to educate the team members quarterly, and a professional security team should lead this. In training, employees must be aware of where and how to access the data, avoid phishing attacks or malicious links, identify suspicious emails, and not share personal details or company data on fake pages.
7. Implement a Strong Password Policy
Implementing a strong password is the first step towards security, helping your business feel confident in its defenses. Using a password policy is essential for companies, such as restricting passwords to their names or reusing passwords, which are easy to hack. So, the password must be a combination of special symbols, numbers, the alphabet, etc., and use a password manager to avoid human error.
8. Create Data Loss Prevention Policy
Businesses handle sensitive data like customer information and financial records. Protecting this critical data is a vital role for them. Therefore, the Data Loss Prevention policy will help you contribute to data security, encrypt data, and store it securely in the cloud or on any device. This policy should be implemented immediately for safety.
9. Use a Separate Admin Account
Using a separate admin account is also a good practice. This helps you feel responsible for security. Using different accounts for installing software, configuring the system, and managing user accounts helps in maintaining a secure environment. This practice will reduce the risk, limit access, enhance security, and improve accountability.
Most Used Professional Tool For Backup and Security Purposes!
Native solutions are effective for backing up data in small volumes. But when it comes to securing data on a large scale, using a professional Office 365 backup tool will be the best approach. Automated solutions like Kernel Office 365 Backup easily integrate with existing security measures to ensure comprehensive data protection and compliance with standards. Some of its main features are mentioned below that can help you to differentiate it from other tools in the market easily.
- Back up emails, contacts, attachments, and calendars with ease, leaving no data behind.
- Restore items, folders, or the entire mailbox in a matter of minutes in case of data loss.
- Split the large mailbox into small chunks using the PST split feature.
- Automate the backup and restore to minimize downtime.
- It is cost-effective and offers a free trial version with 24/7 support.
Conclusion
Security practices are essential for every business in order to protect their data. Whether you’re taking a backup or migrating your Office 365 data, it’s necessary to employ the best practices, such as using a reliable migration tool. For SharePoint in particular, using a professional SharePoint migration tool is the best option. Here, we have discussed all the important practices that businesses can use to keep their Office 365 data secure. You can implement them in your organization to save valuable assets. Along with that, check out the recommended solution to make the comprehensive backup and granular data restore process smooth. It is a perfect tool that offers easy management and high security within budget.
