Q:  We use one of the popular Club website vendors.  Don’t they secure our site and member passwords for us?

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A:  They secure the environment and the site the best they can, but there are some security items out of their control and it is important that the Club take action to protect itself.  Ultimately, a breach of any kind will impact the Club, so it is important that club board and management take steps to ensure best practices.  

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Q:  Why would a hacker want to attack a Club website; we do not store financial data?   One would think that hackers would focus on more high profile targets like financial institutions.

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A:  Hackers have recently turned their attention to small and medium sized businesses.  In the last 12 months 14 Million attacks have been aimed at SMBs.  Clubs are both soft targets and data rich targets because of the demographics of the membership.  Chances are that your members are using their club website password on other sites.  If compromised on your site, then the club will be required to reset all member passwords and notify members that their passwords will need to be reset on other sites as well.

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Q:  We have an IT person/company that helps us with security, why do we need to take additional steps?

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A: Most IT companies do have security experience, but typically it centers on the security of the environment (firewalls, wireless access, etc).  Proper cybersecurity is the result of many things done well and cybersecurity is constantly changing to adapt to new threats and thus numerous technologies must be utilized to ensure you are fully protected online.  Most IT professionals understand the big picture when it comes to cybersecurity, but need assistance with many of the moving pieces.  Since the website is typically hosted outside of the Club network, your IT experts have no control over that environment and need to rely on outside technologies to ensure your website is secure.  

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