Information technology (IT) security is a top priority for most companies today. It has been reported that at least 58% of all businesses worry about cyber attacks. More and more American companies are turning to outside businesses to provide IT security services. More than 31% of these services are being provided by outside firms, according to the 2016 Global Outsourcing Survey, put out by Deloitte. If you are looking for IT companies to help you with your security, there are some things you need to do to get the right firm.
- Talk to other business owners you know. If you know other people who own their own business, you know someone who has hired an IT security services company. One of the most tried and true ways to find quality services and products is to get recommendations from people you know. The best thing for this is to get the same recommendation from two people separately.
- Make sure they have the basics down. For each industry, there are specific things any IT security services firm needs to understand. For example, if you work in the medical industry, a working understanding of all of the requirements set down by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996. It is not enough to understand how important it is to comply with HIPAA regulations. If you business is a bank, there are a different set of rules and regulations for your industry. No managed IT services company can be the right one for you if they do not understand what you do.
- Make sure they understand the specific threats that you face. Every business and every industry has to worry about threats that are are their own. If your business is a retail store, you have different security needs than you would if you were the owner of a biotech company, for example. Knowing what kinds of threats you face makes the company you hire better able to protect you. Your strategy of protection from cyber threats needs to be written with your specific situation in mind.
- How easy are they to reach? When you hire any kind of IT support company, you need to know that you are going to be able to get help when you need it the most. If you are the victim of a cyber attack and need help dealing with it, you are not going to wait to get your system back up and running. Even if you have a small glitch in your system, you can lose money, clients and your reputation if you cannot reach the people you have hired to deal with your IT security needs.
- How much are they willing to train your people. Unfortunately, many of the problems companies have with cyber attacks from from weak links in their own staff. People are far more likely to open an email from a nefarious organization than they should be. You need to make sure the people who work for you have been trained on the best practices to keeping your network and data safe and secure. In addition to using more secure passwords, they need to be able to use whatever system you put in place to protect your system.
- Ask for references. Many IT security services companies have testimonials. You should look at these but you should also look into them. It is very easy to fake these. You should also look for reviews from their current and former clients. You should be able to find these online. Facebook has a lot of groups for cities and towns where people promote local businesses and services. This may be a great way to find the right IT security company for your needs.
- Make sure all of your questions are answered. When you are looking to hire any kind of company to help with any service you need, if they refuse to answer your questions before you hire them, you should know they will not behave differently afterwards.
It is important to hire an IT security services company, you want one you can trust and communicate with. Getting the right one will make a big difference for your company.
