You’re a mid-level manager and you realize your company’s sensitive data has been compromised. What do you do first? You’re the CEO of a reputable firm that has been hacked. When and how do you alert your clients? You’re a customer support representative and a message appears on your computer screen prompting you to click on a link within 15 seconds or else all of the firm’s data will be lost. What do you do?

These scary scenarios are becoming more common in the workplace, no matter the size of the company. Recent studies show that 71 percent of cyberattacks occur at businesses with fewer than 100 employees. The consequences can be disastrous – the U.S. National Cybersecurity Alliance reports that 60 percent of small companies are unable to sustain their businesses over six months after a cyberattack.

“The Arizona Department of Administration recently reported that there are 200 brute force attacks per day, 500 Trojan attacks per day, 35,000 malware attacks per month, and 500 SQL injection attacks per month,” said Michael Cocanower, president and CEO of Phoenix-based itSynergy. “Every employee in a company should be trained as to what to do if sensitive data is compromised. In addition, with the state’s new data breach notification law, it’s important to learn what your company needs to do to be compliant.”

Cocanower, a cybersecurity expert and certified ethical hacker who has been recognized nationally and locally for his IT expertise, will conduct a free, 15-minute “What To Do If You’ve Been Hacked” webinar on Thursday, June 14 at 11:30 a.m. Geared towards non-technical end users in business at any level, the webinar will include tips for containing the damage and briefly address legal and ethical concerns regarding transparency. Interested participants should register at http://www.itsynergy.com/webinar. 

“Building a strong defense will help, but it’s also critical to have a response plan in place and practice it regularly, just like you would with a fire drill,” Cocanower said.

The “Hacking the Human” webinars take place at 11:30 a.m. on the second Thursday of each month. Each webinar provides useful tips to ward off cyberattacks and more complex social engineering schemes that result in theft and corporate espionage.

For more information, call itSynergy at (602) 297-2400 or visit www.itsynergy.com.