The increasing number of data breaches and hacking incidents have made cyber security the biggest concern of all enterprises worldwide. Reports claim that cases of unauthorized access to crucial business data including intellectual property, employee information, financial records, etc. are rising continuously.

In addition, the year 2017 was reported to be the busiest year for cybercriminals as they implanted major data breaches every week. According to the leading cyber security companies, the rising number of data theft incidents has leveraged enterprises to take appropriate measures for providing best-in-class security to their IT infrastructure.

Some security measures that enterprises can take to prevent data breaches include:

1. Firewall Installation: Firewalls are the primary security barricade for an enterprise’s IT infrastructure. According to the top cyber security consulting firms, firewall deployment provides an extra layer of protection to the system. It prevents unauthorized connections and malicious software from entering the enterprise network. It effectively monitors the private network’s traffic movement and detects any malicious behavior to block unauthorized access attempts. Thus, IT experts suggest enterprises avail web application firewall services to enforce new-age security to their systems.
2. Keeping Business and Personal Accounts Separate: Cybercriminals initiate attacks mainly through e-mails. Thus, IT experts suggest business professionals keep their personal and business e-mail accounts separate. According to the top cyber security companies, if a personnel stores business information in personal accounts, hackers can gain access to steal sensitive information and passwords. To provide an extra layer of security, enterprises can also encrypt sensitive and confidential information.
3. Enforcement of Restrictive Data Permissions: According to reports, most data breaches are initiated via front doors by company employees. Therefore, enterprises should restrict access to vital information. The concerned authorities should ensure that employees have access to limited information as necessary for their job. According to security experts, the framing of strict data access policies and enforcement of restrictive data permissions strengthens the security credentials.
4. Implement strong security policies and procedures: Enterprises should have strong security policies and procedures in place to protect their data. These policies and procedures should cover all aspects of data security, from data access control to data encryption.
5. Use up-to-date security software: Enterprises should use up-to-date security software to protect their data from malware and other cyber threats. This includes firewalls, antivirus software, and intrusion detection systems.
6. Monitor your systems and networks: Enterprises should monitor their systems and networks for suspicious activity. This can help them to identify and respond to data breaches quickly.
7. Other Precautionary Measures: To provide efficient and powerful security to sensitive data, every enterprise should take precautionary measures. Some of them include:
   1. Educating and training the employee force is the first step toward protecting an enterprise against data thefts
   2. Setting up a virtual private network (VPN) for the team when they use the internet outside the protected office premises
   3. Effective monitoring of permission modifications and critical file accessibility
   4. Masking of sensitive enterprise data
   5. Having effective backup and recovery plans in case of emergencies

To enhance the security standards, enterprises should strengthen their IT infrastructure with cyber security solutions, security and surveillance services, application security services, and data security and backup services.

By following these tips, enterprises can help to protect themselves from data breaches. It is important to note that there is no such thing as 100% security, but by taking the necessary precautions, enterprises can reduce the risk of a data breach and minimize the damage caused by one if it does occur.