Spring Cleaning: Your Office To-Do List

It’s that time of the year again, it’s Spring! And for many business owners, it’s the time of the year when they take a look at their office and realize that it’s time to do some spring cleaning! If you’re starting to feel like it’s time for you to get reorganized and decluttered, it’s important that you remember how your cybersecurity could be impacted! Choosing to not be proactive or to be careless when cleaning your office may leave you to be exposed to security threats in the future.

Take A Refresher Course About Cybersecurity

Over time, the importance of cybersecurity may diminish, or important ways of staying safe may be forgotten. So when ringing in the new season and creating a spring cleaning list, it’s also a good time to plan a refresher course for cybersecurity or conduct a review! Poor cybersecurity can not only cost your business thousands, if not millions of dollars to repair the damage of lost data, but it could also cost you your customer’s trust! So with phishing scams and hacker tactics constantly changing, you can’t overlook how important this reminder is. As well it’s a good time to review your firewall security, your internet connection or Wi-Fi networks, and make sure each employee’s device has the most accurate software update.

Not to mention, when you’re refreshing your security regulations and tactics, now is a good time to perform an audit that reviews who has access to what. When you don’t stay on top of who has access to what devices, accounts, or data, you risk having a breach! Often, employers find that past employees who no longer work with the company still have access to business sensitive information such as;

• Login access to websites, networks and/or social media accounts,
• Banking information or accounts,
• Physical entry into buildings (keys or security codes),
• And business credit cards. 

Watch How You Dispose Of Old Documents When Spring Cleaning

Over time, certain documents are no longer needed. However, for the security of your business, you need to know how to dispose of those documents properly as the information on them should not simply be thrown out in the garage or recycling bin. Unwanted business files, papers or electronics should always be securely destroyed. This ensures that any confidential information and data that is on it will not be seen by individuals who do not have permission to see it. Ultimately, lowering the risk of fraud, data breaches, or even identity theft. So take the time to hire a third-party vendor who is trusted by others to destroy documents or erase and dispose of electronics properly. Even if you think you deleted the files from a computer, sometimes, that information can still be recovered!

As well, if you’re feeling unsure about what to throw out during your spring cleaning, you may want to create a retention policy if you don’t already have one. Retention policies allow businesses to clearly decipher when it should be time to destroy documents that are no longer needed. Often, many businesses require records to only be held for a minimum of seven years unless otherwise required.

Review Your Software Needs

The Spring season is also a good time to perform an audit on your software needs and what software you are currently using. As time passes and tasks change, you may find that the software you are currently using no longer suits your unique business needs. Meaning, you’re using something that is out of date or requires you to perform more work than is necessary to complete a task. Some important signs that you need to change your software are;

• Noticing that others in your industry are using something different or more advanced,
• You find that your current software is time-consuming and frustrating rather than efficient,
• You are repeating certain steps or entering the same information constantly,
• If your work is constantly disrupted because of servicing or updates,
• Or when you’re just confused what about is or is not working and need advice from an experienced team like Mantralogix.