Why is Cybersecurity Becoming a Top Priority for Direct Selling Companies?

Any company or individual must adopt some form of security to safeguard their digital assets and important personal and business information from potential cyberattacks. A strong cybersecurity architecture can help keep hackers out of systems, limit the damage they cause when they get in, and mitigate the impact on an organization's bottom line. With the development of technology, cybersecurity has become a top priority for direct selling companies.

Businesses in the direct selling industry store prodigious amounts of personal information. These companies face a difficult challenge in protecting their customers, distributors, and employees from cyberattacks. A lean security framework can prove fatal to the business. Today, 43% of cyber attacks target small businesses.

• Cyber attacks by industry.
• Finance & Insurance - 23%
• Manufacturing - 17.7%
• Energy - 11.1%
• Retail - 10.2%
• Professional services - 8.7%

Many types of cyber-attacks can hamper your direct selling business. The following are the most common ones.

Malware attack: Malware attacks infect your system and execute unauthorized actions. They attack your system, corrupting it and making it unusable for the end user. These malware programs are delivered over networks or external devices connected to your system.

Ransomware attack: Ransomware is a form of malware that exploits system vulnerabilities. It is sent to the target system either through email or other onsite or inapplication downloads. These software files hold the system hostage demanding ransom from the victim. There is no known way to safeguard against these attacks, but there are many ways to avoid them in the first place. One way is by not opening attachments from unknown senders or emails with suspicious links, while another is by using protection software like antivirus or anti-malware programs.

Phishing: A phishing attack is an attempt to obtain sensitive information such as personal data, financial information, and passwords by masquerading as a trustworthy entity often done through email. Phishing can come in many forms, often referred to as spear phishing or social engineering.

DDoS attacks: It is a targeted attack that disrupts a website by sending spam traffic from multiple remote locations. The target will see an increase in network latency and denial of service which means they are unable to access certain parts of their site or services at all.