The advent of the internet has made it easier for small businesses to connect with potential customers. However, this also means that your business is more susceptible to spam and viruses.
Spam filtering will help you stay on top of unsolicited emails and protect your company from malicious software. In this post, we’ll give you a few reasons how spam affects small businesses like yours, and how spam filtering can help.
Why & How Spam Emails Affect Your Business
What used to be just plain annoying has evolved into a security threat. Did you know that spam emails can be a huge cyber security threat? For businesses, this can be the entryway for malware and other cyber attacks.
Unfortunately, spam emails are not a thing of the past. A recent survey revealed that businesses receive a staggering 200 billion junk emails every year , with over 90% of spam emails targeting small business owners.
Here, we will list a few ways spam will negatively affect your business. Some are just a nuisance, while some are more serious.
Spam Eats Up Inbox Space
This may not seem like a big deal at first glance. However, when spam takes up your inbox or even your spam folder, you are at risk of missing business emails. Without the necessary space available, your emails will get kicked back to the sender. Not only does this mean you have missed an email, it also looks bad for your business. Customers will think you are disorganized or just plain irresponsible.
Spam Leads to Email Overload
We have already mentioned that spam eats up your inbox space, and in turn this affects how many emails you can receive at once. This is especially detrimental if your small business relies on email communication to run smoothly. Not only that, but spam also leads to alert overload as well. One of the most common ways for a spammer to spread their message is by flooding the email with links that make it difficult for users to close one without opening another leaving them with an overwhelming charge of pop ups. When all of these alerts start popping up, employees are prone to accidentally click on something malicious by mistake.
Spam Carries Malware & Viruses that Compromise Security & Data
Spam can carry serious malware and viruses that affect the security of your business network. If not detected in time, it can quickly spread to other computers that are connected to your network. As a result, other employees may unknowingly share confidential information without even being aware they are doing so.
Additionally, this type of activity can slow down the performance of your network with its continuous threats and attacks from online hackers.
Phishing Emails Can Drain Your Business Resources
In addition to malicious software hiding behind spam emails, there are phishing scams designed to steal personal information and money. Phishing emails often appear to be from reputable companies such as banks and credit card providers. However, they’re becoming more and more proficient at delivering ransomware attacks.
A typical phishing scam will send an email to every employee in a company. The emails can appear legitimate with every attempt made to keep them authentic. They might contain links to websites which, when clicked on by users, download malicious software onto your computer. This could allow outsiders access to any information you have stored on the machine. Furthermore, it makes it possible for them to redirect where your business bank account sends money.
Email Spam Filtering: Why You Need It
Email is one of the world’s most popular methods of communication and has become a staple part of our daily lives. Businesses that don’t take steps to protect themselves from spam-based attacks are putting their reputation at risk. Moreover, they risk the financial stability of their operations.
Spam filtering is a vital tool. It keeps dangerous emails from ever entering your mail client. From there, it will ensure that your business’s reputation and vital data is kept intact.
Types of Email Filtering Solutions
There are many different types of spam filtering solutions that can benefit your business. The first thing we do at CST of Long Island, is to understand the problem and then take steps to find a solution. Our cyber security solutions are custom-tailored for your Long Island business.
Spam filters have two broad categories: cloud-based and on-premise. Each has its own unique benefits, as well as weaknesses. CST will help you determine which type of filtering product you choose for your business.
On-Site Spam Filters
On-site spam filters are hardware that is installed within your business’s IT environment. It is typically used to protect an internal network. The on-site filter will sit between your email servers and your users’ mail clients. It can check for spam content and unwanted attachments, before the message gets delivered to a user’s inbox.
Cloud-Based Spam Filters
Cloud-based solutions are similar to on-site solutions. They are installed on your service provider’s cloud network. Cloud based filtering will protect all your business’s inboxes (and employees) from spam and malicious content.
One of the main benefits of cloud-based spam filtering, is that there are no compatibility issues. You do not need to worry about capacity or infrastructure to run the software on-site.
Hybrid Spam Filters
A hybrid spam filter solution is a popular option. Your business can use the cloud to limit the amount of spam reaching the server. Then, the on-site filter will do the rest!
Additionally, a hybrid spam solution offers an extra layer of security.
Need help with email spam filtering?
Speak with CST Technology Solutions to find the right spam filtering for your Long Island business.
Each business has different needs when it comes to filtering spam. Some may want to simply limit an influx of ads, newsletters, and sales emails. Others may need a higher security level to defend their business from cyber-attacks.
Either way, protecting your users and your data is our highest priority. Give us a call today to get started. CST will find the right solution for you!
Call CST Today (631) 870-0757
