McAfee recognizes that small or medium business owners do not always have the resources they need to avoid cybercrime. We’ve provided resources you can use for immediate action against a crime, as well as for preventative measures to help protect your employees and your business.
ACT NOW
Report data breaches, identity theft, or financial fraud
Report intellectual property crime
Report an international scam
Report a computer security incident with no financial fraud
Protect Yourself
More Information
Data Protection
Data is everywhere. Knowing what data you have—customer data, intellectual property, employee data, and other types of vital information—is critical to classifying it and knowing how to protect it. Be aware of where your data is stored (servers, PDAs, cell phones), and how it is shared (instant messaging, email, email attachments, blog postings by employees, and other means). From this information, you can develop ongoing employee awareness programs to help them understand the threats to your information, the impact these threats could have on your business, and how to appropriately secure the data regardless of which application or device you and your employees are using. Below are some tips for safeguarding your business data:
With the growth in popularity of social networking sites such as MySpace, Facebook, and LinkedIn, cybercriminals know these may be very effective means to reach you as an individual user or as an employee of a targeted company. Because social networking sites rely on the trust among the individuals invited into a trusted circle of contacts, those who use them can tend to be more trusting of people with whom they communicate within these circles.
Users face the threat of impersonators who may lead them to click on links simply by way of their "web of trust," or by maliciously planting links to enticing content. Social networks, by their very nature, are driven by user content: a few bad apples can impact the community as a whole. Be cautious about all unexpected content, including questions, solicitations, hyperlinks, or applications. People may assume that the social networking site owners were involved in creating the application, and lose sight that the content is user-generated, and the vast majority of user-generated social networking content receives no review prior to being made available to all. Be alert, and adhere to McAfee best practices and follow the provided links to have your employees update their privacy settings to appropriate levels. Back to top
Back to top
ACT NOW Report data breaches, identity theft, or financial fraud Report intellectual property crime Report an international scam Report a computer security incident with no financial fraud Protect Yourself More Information
ACT NOW:
Back to top
Back to top
Back to top
Back to top
Report Data Breaches, Identity Theft or Financial Fraud
- File a report with the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) and to your local FBI office.
- File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission.
- Contact your State Attorney General.
- Contact your State Office of Privacy Protection for guidelines on database breach protection laws if a customer's information could have been or has been compromised. If you do not know how to reach your State Privacy Office, contact the National Association of Attorneys General or the National Association of State Chief Information Officers to find contacts for your state.
Back to top
Report Intellectual Property Crime
- Report intellectual property crime through the Department of Justice
- Follow the Department of Justice's Guidelines for Reporting Copyright Infringement or Trademark Violations
- Follow the Department of Justice's Guidelines for Reporting Theft of Trade Secrets
Back to top
Report an International Scam
Common cross-border e-commerce complaints include online shopping, international lotteries and auctions, and foreign money offers. To report an international (sometimes called cross-border) scam:
- File a complaint at EConsumer.gov. This is a joint project of consumer protection agencies from 20 nations, and is focused on ending international scams.
- If you've been involved in a foreign money offer scheme, contact your local Secret Service Field Office.
Back to top
Report a Computer Security Incident [No Financial Fraud]
More than a nuisance, hacking, viruses, spyware, phishing scams and spam can lead to identity theft and other serious crimes. You can help stop cybercrime by reporting the incident to local authorities. While you may not get a personal response to your report, you are doing your part to fight cybercrime by giving law enforcement the information they need to deter and catch online criminals. Below are some suggestions of what to do when you become a target.
- Notify your Internet Service Provider (ISP) of the breach, and file a complaint with the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center.
- If you discover your computer systems have spyware, report this via the FTC Consumer Complaint Form.
- If you receive spam or emails that are “phishing” for personal information, forward them to spam@uce.edu.
Back to top
Protect Yourself:
The following topics are currently of particular concern to businesses and are provided to enable you to appropriately protect your business.Data Protection
Data is everywhere. Knowing what data you have—customer data, intellectual property, employee data, and other types of vital information—is critical to classifying it and knowing how to protect it. Be aware of where your data is stored (servers, PDAs, cell phones), and how it is shared (instant messaging, email, email attachments, blog postings by employees, and other means). From this information, you can develop ongoing employee awareness programs to help them understand the threats to your information, the impact these threats could have on your business, and how to appropriately secure the data regardless of which application or device you and your employees are using. Below are some tips for safeguarding your business data:
- Familiarize yourself with data privacy and data breach laws in the states and countries in which you do business. Contact your State Office of Privacy Protection for guidelines. If you do not know how to reach your State Privacy Office, contact the National Association of Attorneys General or the National Association of State Chief Information Officers to find contacts for your state.
- Understand the threats facing businesses today and take appropriate precautions.
- Take appropriate measures, such as encryption, to mitigate the risk of stolen laptops and other mobile devices that store sensitive information
- Use ongoing employee awareness training or newsletters to help employees understand the nature of the evolving threats to your business
- Review the Better Business Bureau’s Basic Rules for Businesses on Protecting Personal Information.
With the growth in popularity of social networking sites such as MySpace, Facebook, and LinkedIn, cybercriminals know these may be very effective means to reach you as an individual user or as an employee of a targeted company. Because social networking sites rely on the trust among the individuals invited into a trusted circle of contacts, those who use them can tend to be more trusting of people with whom they communicate within these circles.
Users face the threat of impersonators who may lead them to click on links simply by way of their "web of trust," or by maliciously planting links to enticing content. Social networks, by their very nature, are driven by user content: a few bad apples can impact the community as a whole. Be cautious about all unexpected content, including questions, solicitations, hyperlinks, or applications. People may assume that the social networking site owners were involved in creating the application, and lose sight that the content is user-generated, and the vast majority of user-generated social networking content receives no review prior to being made available to all. Be alert, and adhere to McAfee best practices and follow the provided links to have your employees update their privacy settings to appropriate levels.
- Visit McAfee’s tips and resources for Social Networking
- Determine the best use of Web 2.0 applications, such as social networking sites, for your particular business environment.
- Balance the use of such Web 2.0 tools with effective and ongoing employee "best practices" training for those using such applications
Back to top
More Information:
- Always use Best Practices
- Secure Your Computers
- Use the McAfee Cybercrime Scanner on your individual computers
- Leverage the FTC businesses resources
- Review the Department of Justice Computer Crimes Division resources
- If you're a small business, get advice from the National Cyber Security Alliance
- Protect your business and your employees from phishing with advice from the Anti-Phishing Working Group
- Visit the McAfee Threat Center and sign up for threat advisories, listen to podcasts on the latest threats, review McAfee's latest research, read blogs published by McAfee's threat experts around the world, and get other information to help your business.
Back to top
