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Business owners go to a lot of effort and expense in terms of their business, yet, it’s so easy for things to become undone in a matter of days should you not protect yourself from significant risks.

Today’s landscape, in the modern world of business, has changed dramatically in terms of security, with much focus on digital security and data protection rather than the physical security of locks and bolts, or security guards, that was once associated with commercial security.

Whilst such measures are still required, after all, you don’t want to leave the doors open to your office or a shop floor unattended – there is a need to think about security slightly more holistically, incorporating the digital aspects, and in this vein this article offers a number of aspects to consider as a business owner in today’s security conscious world.

1. PROTECT YOUR DATA

In addition to cybercrime, the most common issue when it comes to data loss is through physical theft (e.g. your laptop gets stolen at an airport) or, more likely, corrupt data as a result of accidental damage.

For this reason, you want to make sure you back everything up to the cloud, rather than relying on your laptop’s hard drive (even if you like to believe it’s indestructible), external hard drives which often malfunction over time, or USB’s which are flimsy and easy to snap – meaning the data on them would have to be forensically recovered which is an expensive process.

2. EMPLOYMENT

If you’re employing staff then employment lawyers are absolutely essential to protecting yourself, and your staff – as this area of law is particularly intricate with new case law informing modern practices on an almost weekly basis.  This area of law evolves so rapidly that even if you think you can get away with using something you used previously, it’s wise to get it checked out first by the professionals.

3. INCIDENT PREVENTION

Business owner’s are vicariously liable for the negligent actions of its employees – meaning, if for instance, you had a restaurant and a waiter slipped whilst holding a knife, which subsequently landed in the leg of a dinner, you would be held liable for your employees negligence.  

It’s therefore imperative, from a legal perspective, to ensure the adequate training of your staff, as this will mitigate your liability as if you can show you took all reasonable steps as an employer to prevent the incident taking place – the courts are likely to look much more favorably on your position in terms of damages.

4.  PHYSICAL SECURITY

We often forget the importance of physical security, in a business context, yet as with recent incidents such as people walking into corporate offices and attacking office workers, whether randomly due to mental health issues, or planned as a reaction to their disdain for corporate policies… employees are feeling more and more vulnerable, therefore, it’s good to have measures in place to protect your staff, and your customers.

It’s sad that so many public facing services, such as transport operators, now have to put up signs stating “we will not tolerate abuse or physical violence”, but this is the landscape we live in today, and it’s good to have a plan in place… along with practical measures, to ensure you protect yourself and your staff.