It’s been quite a while since the world started to host virtual events. There is no doubt that virtual events are easy, convenient, and super beneficial. They allow the organizers to expand their brand reach with utmost convenience and ease. Since virtual events don’t require the attendees to travel, they come with advantages for this side too. Along with it, virtual events are super economic as they don’t involve expenses that generally come with physical events.
However, while we are counting on the advantages of virtual events, don’t overlook the disadvantages and loopholes of virtual events. One of the many disadvantages and downsides virtual events have is cybersecurity threats. While we believe that the technology is evolving at a faster pace, it is also important to know that it has several limitations also. Since economic virtual events have become extremely popular, online security threats are also becoming more prominent. Various reports suggest that nearly 3–4 in 10 companies face cyberattacks since the world adapted to virtual events. Though these kinds of threats existed before the pandemic also, it was during recent times that they have become so prominent. Hence, it becomes the need of the hour that we should learn about it and find suitable measures to prevent such attacks on our virtual events.
Addressing this need of the hour, we have come up with a full-fledged blog that will help you know more about the importance of cybersecurity in virtual events.
As we mentioned, cybersecurity has been in existence long before the introduction of virtual events, but now that virtual events have become a part of our lives, we are seeing these cases regularly. Because organizations host virtual meetings, teleconferences, virtual events, etc. regularly, this issue is more worrying than ever before.
There are not one or two but many threats that come with cyberattacks. Though these threats might vary in scale, seriousness, or quality, it doesn’t make all these issues less important. Not only for any organization, the impact of cybersecurity attacks can be dangerous for you as an individual, also. With cyber-attacks, the perpetrators can aim for any important thing. For example, they can target your bank account, passwords, social media, employee data, etc. The target of the perpetrators can vary as per their choice, but still, things can get extremely dangerous.
Here’s why you should consider the following points to ensure the utmost safety of your virtual event.
Set Up Strong Password:
It doesn’t matter what the scale of your virtual event is; be it a virtual meeting, a virtual conference, or a full-fledged virtual event, always protect your event with strong passwords. Always read some guidelines that suggest the ideal length and characters you should involve in your password. Experts suggest that you shouldn’t set a password of fewer than 11 characters, and it should be a combination of both characters and numbers. Don’t share your passwords with anyone who isn’t trustworthy. Always share them with a maximum of 3–4 reliable and authoritative people. One of the main reasons for online events hacking is a weak password. Hence, never take your passwords for granted; they can save you your entire event.
Protect Your Network:
Cyberattacks have become extremely frequent in regular team meetings. The most common reason for that is the weak or unprotected network connection. While organizers do consider the password and take effective measures to protect the environment, they generally overlook the networks. So, if your internet provider hasn’t taken effective measures, there are complete chances that your virtual event might get hacked, and your computer can get accessed. Hence, no matter what event you are hosting, never overlook this point.
Keep an Eye on the Event Activity:
The next measure you can take to protect your event is keeping a check on the entire event activity. Though almost all the customizable virtual event platforms come with this feature that lets you keep an eye on the attendee activity, you can still integrate it with other software. The reason we insist on doing this is that god forbid if any perpetrator manages to hack the event, this awareness will help you take necessary steps in meantime and allow you to save your event and brand image.
Educate the Attendees About Cybersecurity:
The next thing you need to do is educate your audience about cybersecurity and the necessary steps one should follow. While you invite the attendees to your virtual event, send them a few points about cybersecurity. Some of these factors are:
- Make your attendees aware of the possible attacks that can take place during the event and all the measures that are there to prevent them.
- Not only this, inform the attendees about the importance of protecting the virtual event with the password and why it is important to not keep sensitive information on the computer.
- Inform them about the measures that can be taken if they feel something fishy about the virtual event.
Cybersecurity is not something that should be overlooked and ignored. As an organizer, first, you need to understand the seriousness of the subject and then learn some measures that should be taken. The reason cybersecurity is popular is directly related to the popularity and advancement of technology. While it is not possible to leverage a technology that comes with no threats as of now, the only thing that we can do is take proper precautions and refrain from getting our virtual event cyber attacked.
