Don’t Press Your Luck This St. Patrick’s Day: 5 Smart Cyber Moves Every Business Should Make

St. Patrick’s Day is all about luck.

But when it comes to your business and cybersecurity, luck is not a strategy.

Every year, we talk to business owners who thought:

• “We’re too small to be a target.”

• “Our employees would never click that.”

• “We’ve never had a breach before.”

• “Our backups are probably fine.”

  
  

And most of the time… they were only lucky. 🍀

Until they weren’t!

Cybersecurity isn’t about being lucky. It’s about being prepared. This March, instead of pressing your luck, here are FIVE moves every business should make to protect their operations.

Think Before You Click

Phishing attacks remain the #1 way businesses get compromised.

Today’s phishing emails don’t look like obvious scams. They look like:

• Vendor invoices

• HR messages

• Password resets

• Shipment notifications

• Messages from your CEO

  
  

With one click leading to ransomware, stolen credentials, or unauthorized access.

With One Simple Rule you can reduce these attacks:If something feels urgent, unexpected, or slightly off, slow down. Verify what it is, before you click on it.

Better yet, to be fully protected, invest in user awareness training and advanced email filtering so you’re not relying on luck or instincts alone.🍀

Use Strong Passwords & Stop Reusing Them

Weak and reused passwords are still one of the easiest ways attackers gain access.

If one website is breached and the same password is used elsewhere, attackers will try it everywhere.

It’s better to:

• Use long passphrases (14+ characters)

• Avoid common words or predictable patterns

• Never reuse passwords

• Use a password manager

  
  

What’s even better? Pair this with multi-factor authentication. 

Turn On Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

If you only change one thing about your business this year, make it this:

Multi-factor authentication. This adds an additional layer of protection beyond your password. It’s typically a phone prompt, app verification, or a hardware key.

Making it so that, even if credentials are stolen, MFA often stops the attack in its tracks.

Yet, many businesses still don’t enforce MFA using:

• Microsoft 365

• VPN access

• Email

• Cloud applications

  
  

That’s pressing your luck. 🍀

Backups Are Not “Set It and Forget It”

We see this all the time. A company says, “We have backups. It’s nothing to worry about.”

But when we ask:

• When was the last restore test?

• How long would recovery take?

• Are backups protected from ransomware?

• Are they immutable?

• Are they offsite?

  
  

There’s silence.

Backups are ONLY valuable if they are:

• Regularly tested

• Monitored

• Isolated from production systems

• Capable of restoring quickly

  
  

Having backups isn’t enough. You need to know they actually work.

Don’t Ignore Small Warning Signs

Most breaches DON’T start with catastrophe.

They start with:

• A strange login notification

• A slightly slower server

• A user getting locked out unexpectedly

• A small change in configuration

• An expired certificate

• A firewall alert that’s dismissed as “probably nothing”

  
  

Small signals become BIG problems when ignored.

Proactive monitoring and disciplined IT processes prevent small issues from becoming expensive disasters!

Cybersecurity Isn’t About Luck

• It’s about consistency.

• It’s about standards.

• It’s about discipline.

  
  

Businesses that rely on luck eventually pay for it. Businesses that take cybersecurity seriously by reducing downtime and protecting their reputation, are able to operate with confidence and ease.🍀

This St. Patrick’s Day, enjoy the celebrations, BUT don’t gamble with your technology.

If you’re unsure whether your security posture is based on preparation or luck, that’s a conversation worth having.

Because when it comes to your business, security shouldn’t depend on four-leaf clovers.🍀