5 security mistakes small businesses make (and how to fix them this week)

I test security for a living, and the same five problems show up in almost every small business I look at. None of them require an IT department to fix.

1. One password, everywhere

If your email password is also your bank password, one leaked account is all of them. Get a password manager and let it do the remembering.

2. No second factor on email

Your email resets every other password you own. Turn on two-factor authentication there first. Today.

3. The forgotten admin account

That employee who left last year? Their account probably still works. Review who has access every quarter.

4. The router nobody ever updated

Default credentials and years-old firmware on the box that all your business traffic flows through. Fifteen minutes fixes it.

5. Backups that were never tested

A backup you’ve never restored from is a hope, not a plan. Test one restore.

Want a real assessment? That’s literally what I do.