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Cybersecurity Help for Home Users and Small Businesses

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Previous Cybersecurity Tips

Framework
October 26, 2026

Include recovery in planning — During Onboarding

A security program should consider how the organization will restore operations after an incident. During onboarding, Include the control in the new-employee checklist so it happens consistently. Keep the process simple enough that employees can follow it consistently.
NIST — Cybersecurity Framework 2.0 for Small Business →
Logging
October 25, 2026

Review alerts — During A Quarterly Review

Security alerts are only useful when someone notices and acts on them. Assign responsibility for reviewing important alerts. During a quarterly review, Record the result so you can demonstrate that the control was actually checked. Keep the process simple enough that employees can follow it consistently.
CISA — Use Logging on Business Systems →
Passwords
October 24, 2026

Treat security-question answers like passwords — During Offboarding

If a service still uses security questions, use answers that are not publicly discoverable and do not reuse them elsewhere. During offboarding, Remove or review the related access as part of the employee departure checklist. Test the control periodically and record any exceptions that need remediation.
NIST — How Do I Create a Good Password? →
Framework
October 23, 2026

Include recovery in planning — When Working With A Vendor

A security program should consider how the organization will restore operations after an incident. When working with a vendor, Confirm who is responsible for the control and what access the vendor receives. Assign an owner and a review frequency so the control does not become forgotten.
NIST — Cybersecurity Framework 2.0 for Small Business →
Basics
October 5, 2026

Plan for incidents

A short, practical incident-response plan is better than trying to invent procedures during an emergency.
NIST — Cybersecurity Basics →
Passwords
October 2, 2026

Check breach notifications

If a provider reports a credential breach, treat the affected password as compromised and replace it.
NIST — How Do I Create a Good Password? →
Backups
September 30, 2026

Keep an offsite copy

An offsite recovery copy can help when a fire, theft, flood, or ransomware event affects the primary location.
CISA — How to Protect the Data that is Stored on Your Devices →
Logging
September 29, 2026

Enable security logging — When Replacing Technology

Turn on useful security logs for servers, endpoints, firewalls, cloud services, and important applications. When replacing technology, Make security requirements part of the selection and deployment process. Assign an owner and a review frequency so the control does not become forgotten.
CISA — Use Logging on Business Systems →
Basics
September 23, 2026

Treat cyber risk as business risk — When Reviewing Cyber Insurance

Discuss cybersecurity in terms of downtime, financial loss, customer trust, and operational impact—not just technical problems. When reviewing cyber insurance, Check that your actual configuration matches any security requirements in your policy. Test the control periodically and record any exceptions that need remediation.
NIST — Cybersecurity Basics →
Logging
September 22, 2026

Centralize important logs

Centralizing logs makes it easier to correlate events and notice suspicious activity across multiple systems.
CISA — Use Logging on Business Systems →
Backups
September 21, 2026

Keep multiple backup copies — When Planning Disaster Recovery

Use multiple recovery points so a problem discovered today does not destroy every available copy of the data. When planning disaster recovery, Include the control in recovery procedures rather than treating it as an afterthought. Make this a documented checklist item rather than an informal expectation.
CISA — How to Protect the Data that is Stored on Your Devices →
MFA
September 20, 2026

Require MFA for cloud administrators

Cloud administration accounts can control large amounts of data and should have strong authentication.
NIST — Multi-Factor Authentication →
Phishing
September 19, 2026

Do not reply to suspicious messages — During Offboarding

Use a known phone number or trusted website to verify an unusual request rather than replying to the suspicious message. During offboarding, Remove or review the related access as part of the employee departure checklist. Test the control periodically and record any exceptions that need remediation.
NIST — Phishing →
MFA
September 16, 2026

Test MFA recovery — After A Security Incident

Verify that authorized users can recover access without relying on insecure workarounds. After a security incident, Use what happened as evidence for deciding whether the control needs improvement. Remove temporary exceptions when the original business need ends.
NIST — Multi-Factor Authentication →
Phishing
September 15, 2026

Verify urgent requests

Urgency is a common phishing tactic. Confirm unusual requests using contact information you already trust.
NIST — Phishing →
Passwords
September 10, 2026

Avoid predictable passwords

Do not build passwords from company names, seasons, years, sports teams, or information easily found about the user.
NIST — How Do I Create a Good Password? →
Ransomware
September 8, 2026

Practice business continuity — During Offboarding

Decide how the business will operate if critical systems are unavailable for several days. During offboarding, Remove or review the related access as part of the employee departure checklist. Keep the process simple enough that employees can follow it consistently.
NIST — Ransomware →
Backups
September 7, 2026

Monitor backup failures

A backup that silently fails for weeks is a business continuity problem. Configure alerts for failed jobs.
CISA — How to Protect the Data that is Stored on Your Devices →