Freight industry representatives will probably find that cybersecurity issues are more important now than ever. They hold client records for organizations that do business in almost every sector. While it might seem that there’s a ton of pressure on them to keep things running smoothly, there’s a good chance that following a few simple tips will drastically reduce the risk of an attack.
1. Store Customer Details in a Secure Database
All databases that track shipments or package locations need to be encrypted with the strongest scrambling algorithm that’s practical for a particular use case. Strongly encrypted data shouldn’t be distinguishable from digital background noise, so attackers wouldn’t be able to locate anything of use even if they did intercept something private. Quality encryption schemes can protect data even if someone physically steals a hard drive or data tape cartridge.
2. Use Online Training Resources
Everything from simple educational industry webinars to more sophisticated group training sessions should reduce the chances of someone acting in an unsafe fashion. There’s a good possibility that a majority of attacks happen as a result of someone making a single mistake. Social engineering attacks bypass computer security technology by instead trying to convince employees that they need to give up privileged information. Training programs may be the only way to prevent these kinds of attacks from succeeding since even the strongest firewalls can’t do anything against someone who can persuade others to give up their credentials.
3. Create a List of Best Practices
A list of standardized engineering practices that everyone has to follow can help to ensure that every piece of infrastructure gets built securely from the ground up. Rules about when and how people can handle sensitive customer data prevent situations where people aren’t sure how to proceed safely. Computer industry insiders have already come up with detailed lists that should be easy to adapt to the needs of those who work in transportation.
4. Build a Single Source of Truth
Once these rules are in place, employees need a single place to go whenever there’s a question about them. By crafting a single source of truthful information, IT managers can be certain that their staffers will know where to turn to when they notice something unusual. If they receive a phone call from a bad actor, then a quick glance at this shared document should be more than enough to stop an attack in its tracks.
5. Clear Out Caches Regularly
Deleting browser cache files is a great way to speed up individual computers, but in the freight industry, it’s absolutely vital. Websites that are used to process customer details could be filled with potentially sensitive information. If these machines aren’t cleaned on a regular basis, then there’s a good possibility that system crackers could intercept it. Simply using an app to overwrite old data could be enough to deal with this problem, though more secure data shredding software might be needed for those manually processing payment details on a regular basis.