Given the growing cyberattack surface, frequent supply chain breaches, and cloud migration, data security management is more important than ever. Have you ever had the impression that a company is expressing regret for a breach involving private information or acknowledging that they have been compromised? It’s not only you. The frequency of cyberattacks & cybercrimes is alarmingly rising. Not only are big corporations experiencing data breaches, but small businesses are also increasingly being targeted by hackers who are aware that these companies may not have strong cybersecurity protection in place.
Data security best practices and network security are rather different. The former involves software, physical procedures, and even staff training. However, minimizing the several attack avenues that cybercriminals may take advantage of depends just as much on protecting your website.
Keep reading and exploring to learn more about data security defination and small business network security best practices in 2025.
Table of Contents
What is Data Security?
The process of preventing illegal access, use, or disclosure of digital data in a way that aligns with an organization’s risk policy is known as data security. Protecting data against interruption, alteration, or destruction is another aspect of it.
Since data is the lifeblood of every organization and is crucial to its success, protecting it is a top priority for businesses of all sizes. The confidentiality, convenience, and integrity of an organization’s data are all dependent on data security. Small businesses may preserve client faith in their brand, satisfy pertinent compliance standards, and safeguard their precious assets by putting effective data security procedures in place.
Data protection and data security management are two ideas that are frequently confused or used interchangeably when discussing data protection. Despite being distinct ideas, they complement one another. It might be useful to describe them along with data protection in order to better understand how they cooperate.
What Makes Data Security Management Important?
According to a Varonis poll, just 5% of businesses have their documents and files safely locked. You may reduce possible risks and the number of successful attacks on your company’s data by implementing data protection and data security. Additional justifications for implementing safe data management are as follows:
- The cost of data breaches is high: If a ransomware assault succeeds, your important data will be encrypted. If you don’t have enough backups, you will either lose the data or pay the ransom. The average cost of extortion in 2020 will be $233,000, according to Coveware. Any data loss will result in expenses, even if there is no ransomware threat, since you will still lose your data if you decide to recover it instead of paying a ransom.
- Continuity of operations: For example, your whole firm’s operations will face suspension for an hour if you lose access to your e-commerce database. This will not only cause financial harm but also lost business opportunities.
- Negative reputation: In addition, you will have to notify regulators if you lose the need for your customers’ data or if it is made public due to a successful breach, which would harm your image.
Also Read: Cloud Data Management: The Future of Data Storage and Management
10 Most Important Data Security Best Practices in 2025
Here are the top 10 data small business network security best practices for better data security management you must do in 2025.
Education
Preventing a cyberattack is far simpler than recovering from one. Recovery from a ransomware assault that steals your company’s critical data is frequently a drawn-out and difficult process. By educating staff members on personal cybersecurity, fundamental security, and the frequency of cyberthreats, ransomware attacks can be prevented before they cause significant harm. Your staff should be aware that they might be the target of bad actors looking to take advantage of any opening in your business.
$3.86 million is the average cost of a cyberattack, while $6 trillion is the estimated total cost of all cybercrime worldwide. You can wind up paying more in the long run if you don’t invest in training your staff on enterprise data security best practices.
Improved Multi-Factor Authentication And Passwords
You think no one will figure out that your mother’s birthdate and maiden name are your password? Rethink your thought. Strong algorithms created by cybercriminals can quickly and accurately guess complex passwords. According to conventional password advice, a password should be at least 12 characters in length and contain a mixture of both uppercase letters and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.
Although this is a fine approach, it is insufficient, and almost all security experts advise the use of multi-factor or two-factor authentication. A security procedure known as two-factor authentication (opens in a new tab) necessitates two distinct authentication factors in order to access programs or services.
Also Read: Cyber Security Tools: 30 Essential Solutions For Maximum Protection in 2025
Use Different Servers For Data Management
To guard against cyberattacks, data management requires special cloud security for small business. Furthermore, your data security management systems are vulnerable to several attack vectors that target websites if they are housed on the same server as your online presence.
To lessen these security risks, isolate your data management servers from all other components. Moreover, risk management tools have demonstrated efficacy in precisely evaluating the security risks associated with every asset on your network. You can use a dedicated server to protect your important data.
Avoid Using The Default Ports On Your Network
When data is sent between servers, TCP and UDP connections are used. These processes take advantage of the default network connections when they are set up.
A cybercriminal who attacks the machine must experiment with different port number combinations by avoiding the default ports. Because of the larger amount of labor involved, this can deter the attacker from continuing their attack attempts.
Set Up a Proxy Server For HTTPS
A proxy server examines requests coming from a workstation before sending them to the data security management server. In a sense, this server acts as a gatekeeper, trying to block unauthorized inquiries.
The most popular protocol for proxy servers is HTTP. If you work with sensitive data, such as passwords, payment information, or personal info, set up an HTTPS server. In this manner, you may further increase security by encrypting the data that is being sent through a proxy server.
Put Real-Time Database Monitoring Into Practice
You can improve your data security and respond to any attacks by regularly checking your data management systems for attempted breaches.
Monitoring applications, like Tripwire’s real-time File Identity Monitoring (FIM), may keep track of everything that is done on the data management server and alert you to any security flaws. To protect your important data, set up escalation procedures for a possible assault.
Comply With Data Security Laws
Keeping up with new and constantly evolving data security & privacy laws and regulations, such as the California Consumer Privacy Act, the HIPAA, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act that regulates financial data, and the GDPR in Europe, can be difficult for small businesses.
It’s important to keep up with developments not just in the state and nation where your firm is situated, but also in the industry in which it operates. Assign the work to one or more staff members, if at all possible, or think about hiring a consultant to make sure your company stays in obedience and stays out of trouble. To keep up with changes to enterprise data security management, you may also set up online alerts and subscribe to pertinent periodicals, websites, and legislative trackers.
Categorize Data
Every piece of data has a different value. For instance, financial data and personally identifiable information (PII) are far more valuable than a technical white paper.
Data should be tagged, categorized, and assigned a value after being inventoried and its purpose understood. Organizations can safeguard data according to its applicable value by using classification labels. Data comes into four classes, while the language for classification depends on the needs of your organization:
- public (accessible without charge);
- internal (to stay inside a business);
- confidential (noncompliance data would be harmful if disclosed); and
- sensitive (protection required by compliance).
Determining when and where data should be stored, how to safeguard it, and who may access it are all aided by consistent and appropriate data classification. Additionally, it enhances compliance reporting.
Use Endpoint Security Systems
The endpoints on your network are always in danger. To reduce the likelihood of potential data breaches, it is crucial to have a strong API endpoint security infrastructure. You can begin by putting the following actions into action:
Installing antivirus software on all workstations and servers is essential. Perform routine scans to keep your system healthy and detect any computer viruses, including ransomware.
- Anti-spyware: Usually installed without the user’s knowledge, spyware is a type of harmful computer software. Usually, its goal is to gather personal data and learn more about user behavior. You can get rid of or stop them with the use of anti-spyware and anti-adware software.
- Pop-up blockers: Annoying applications on your computer without any obvious purpose other than endangering the system’s functionality are pop-ups. To stay safe, install pop-up blockers.
- Firewalls: Most experts consider firewalls as one of the finest strategies for data security management since they operate as a barrier between your data and attackers. For further security, you may also install internal firewalls.
Keep Up With Application Updates
Research indicates that 88% of applications have outdated software components. Moreover, out-of-date plugins provide open risk factors and expose malware vulnerabilities, which hackers might use to access other parts of your network. Software poses a serious security issue as it may manage your database or even your website.
You should use only trustworthy data security management software. However, you also need to make sure it’s up to date and download any new updates as soon as they’re available.
FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
What Is Data Security Management?
Data security management procedures shield you and your company from inadvertent errors or hackers who can steal or destroy your valuable assets.
What Are The Three Types Of Data Security?
Technical security, administrative security, and physical security are the three categories of enterprise data security.
What Are The 5 Key Components Of Security Management?
Risk assessment, security procedures and guidelines, security controls, maintaining assets, and incident response and recovery are the five main pillars of security management.
What Are The 5 Types Of Data Security Control?
Data masking, anonymization, role-based access, and encryption are examples of controls. One of the most popular types of data control is data encryption.
Conclusion
Data security is one of the most important components of modern organizational security. You ought to create a thoughtful, advanced, yet practical policy for the best data security management. To stay up with changes in the infrastructure and business processes, test and revise them often. It lessens the possibility of an expensive or even catastrophic data loss!