Lock It
ID Theft Prevention for Business
Protect the information that you keep.
- Put documents and other materials containing personally identifiable information in a locked room or file cabinet.
- Remind employees to put files away, log off their computers, and lock their file cabinets and office doors at the end of the day.
- Implement appropriate access controls for your building.
- Encrypt sensitive information if you must send it over public networks.
- Regularly run up-to-date anti-virus and anti-spyware programs on individual computers.
- Require employees to use strong passwords.
- Caution employees against transmitting personal information via e-mail.
- Create security policies for laptops used both within your office, and while traveling.
- Use a firewall to protect your computers and your network.
- Set “access controls” to allow only trusted employees with a legitimate business need to access the network.
- Monitor incoming Internet traffic for signs of security breaches.
- Check references and do background checks before hiring employees who will have access to sensitive data.
- Create procedures to ensure workers who leave your organization no longer have access to sensitive information.
- Educate employees about how to avoid phishing and phone pretexting scams.