Cybersecurity: Stop a Small Problem Before it Grows

No business has the resources to eliminate all cyber threats. That means that you must make the right strategic choices regarding which threats to prioritize. For the transportation and logistics industry, this might be customer financial data or processes that much of your business relies on.

Identify Vulnerabilities

The first step in eliminating risk is to identify them. Where do your vulnerabilities lie? Identify your company’s most important assets. These are often your greatest vulnerabilities, and they generally fall into two categories: 1) The sensitive data your company possesses and 2) The valuable services you offer. For those in the transportation industry, this would include customer data, shipping processes and the shipments themselves. Customers are often the target of phishing scams, including fake parcel delivery failure emails. These either contain malware or are an attempt to gain personal information from the customer, using an email address and logos that mirror your company’s.

Implement a Strategy

While precautions such as firewalls and detection systems for attacks and other malware is a great start, alone they’re insufficient. Risk management also needs to take into account failures on the part of personnel and organizational weaknesses. Adopting proactive cybersecurity measures with the help of a professional team will provide an opportunity for transportation and logistics companies to differentiate themselves. Forward-thinking companies will see safer offerings as a competitive advantage, especially as these attacks continue.

Better Safe Than Sorry

When a cyberattack occurs, companies are hit from many different directions. Here’s an example of what could occur if your business is compromised:

• Financial losses resulting from customers who stop buying your products and services.
• Ancillary costs related to fixing the problem, including regulatory fines, forensics, and consulting costs.
• Losses from providing customers with years of remediation, which could include offering credit monitoring services, paying legal fees and penalties.
• Lingering damage to your brand resulting in decreased sales

Ship Secure

Until recently, cybercriminals have been more preoccupied with gaining access to banks, retailers, government agencies and other entities with large sums of money. However, as these organizations beef up their cybersecurity, hackers look elsewhere for a payday, or simply to cause a disruption. The transportation and logistics industry is ripe for the picking. Protect yourself and your customers by implementing strong cybersecurity measures today.

Contact Us to learn more about shipping securely.

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