Cyber Security for Your Salon!

By Digital Health Co

In today’s digital age, beauty salons manage their business for the most part online. Whether it is through your website, social media, or booking software, it is likely that your salon stores a significant amount of data online. But have you ever wondered how safe this data really is?

Beauty salons like yours are not exempt from potential cyber-attacks and data breaches and sadly, when your digital presence falls into the wrong hands it can have devastating consequences – both financial and legal –for your business.

But don’t despair. There are a few best practices you can seamlessly put in place to enhance your salon and customers’ security online. If you’re a beauty salon owner who, let’s face it, has little patience for tech, but still wants to keep her business safe online, then this is for you.

Your data and potential risks for your salon.

To find out how your beauty salon can be the target of a cyber-attack, you first need to understand the nature and quantity of the data you own online. A beauty salon typically collects customer information such as name, address, or phone number, along with appointment type, preferences, and timeline. As you can see, your business stores plenty of sensitive information about its customers, and it is vital to keep it safe.

But, your data isn’t just limited to your customers. Data such as social media metrics, website analytics, online reviews, as well as sale and revenue data from your Point-of-Sale (which is collected by various software and platforms) are all forms of sensitive information attached to your beauty salon that you must protect.

Your beauty salon’s data is valuable for several reasons. This data is what you use for marketing research, development, and strategy. Your data gives you a deep insight into your customer’s needs, which you can use to build a competitive advantage and grow your business. For example, your customers might be predominantly women in their 40s living in your neighbourhood who spend over AUD 300 per month on a specific type of treatment and prefer to book online.

So why would someone steal this type of data? Well, online data can be bought and sold on the dark web, making it a valuable commodity for hackers. They can use this information for identity theft, financial fraud, and other illegal activities, which can significantly damage your business. Therefore, it is crucial for your beauty salon to protect its online data. Here are the most common types of cyber attacks a beauty salon can be subject to:

1. Theft of customer data: If your salon’s online systems – such as your booking software or website – are breached, cybercriminals may be able to access sensitive customer information, such as names, addresses, and payment details. This can put customers at risk of identity theft or fraud and can also damage your salon’s reputation.

2. Ransomware attacks: Ransomware is a type of malware typically attached to a fraudulent file or webpage that can lock your salon’s computer systems, website, social media, or data until a ransom is paid. This can disrupt your business operations and cause significant financial losses.

3. Scam emails or texts: This type of scam involves Hackers sending emails and texts impersonating government bodies or other legitimate businesses to get banking information. As such, it is easy to be fooled into giving sensitive business details, paying fraudulent invoices, or purchasing gift cards.

4. Data loss: A cyber-attack on any of your systems or social accounts can remove important business data, such as customer information, appointment schedules, or financial records. This can be difficult and expensive to recover.

5. Hack through third-party apps: You may use third-party apps or services to manage your salon’s social media accounts, such as scheduling tools or analytics platforms. If these apps are not properly secured, they could be exploited by hackers to gain access to your salon’s social media accounts.

6. Phishing scams: Hackers may use phishing scams to trick your employees into giving up their logins or other private credentials. For example, they might send an email that appears to be from a social media platform or wholesale provider, asking the recipient to click on a link and enter their login information.

7. Credential stuffing attacks: Credential stuffing is a type of cyber-attack where hackers use stolen usernames and passwords (usually linked to a data leak) from one website to try to gain access to other sites.

8. Social Impersonation: Hackers might create fake social media accounts and duplicate your content to scam customers into giving their personal and payment information to book a service.

Unfortunately, many beauty salons like yours don’t have robust cybersecurity measures in place, such as two-factor authentication or regular password updates. This can make it easier for hackers to gain access to data and launch a cyberattack.

We’ve heard too many horror stories of beauty owners in Australia completely losing access to their website domain, Instagram account, and the 10k potential customer base they nurtured for years, as a result of a hack. You may not realise it but the online presence you’ve built online for your business is valuable and therefore, you must keep it secured.

Cyber security best practices for beauty salons.

As you now understand, it is vital to protect your customer and salon’s data to avoid a potential nightmare scenario. Many industries, including beauty, may be subject to regulatory requirements around cybersecurity. In Australia, all businesses are required to have cybersecurity policies in place, such as a privacy policies page on their website or guidelines linked to customer data. To meet these standards and avoid penalties for non-compliance, these best practices are a must-have for your beauty salon.

Use strong and creative passwords.

To stay safe online, you need a variety of passwords. This is because when you reuse the same passwords over and over (like your dog’s name or a birthday), it is more likely that your account and data will be compromised at some point and give an opportunity for more of your online accounts to be compromised. Having a list of multiple password options that you refresh every 3 to 6 months can prevent data leaks and keep your information secure at all times.

Additionally, Two-factor authentication (such as identification with a phone number or an authenticator app) adds an extra layer of security to online accounts.

To come up with a strong list of passwords, make sure to combine letters, numbers, and symbols. You can create the perfect password combination by using your words and lucky numbers related to your vision board, core values or mission statement. Sometimes you and your team can remember but also use a business motivator.

Whether that’s Beautyawards2023 (if you’re visualising a recognition in a specific year) or $10KTarget! (If you have a specific monthly revenue target you want to reach), it is a great way to create unique and safe passwords while sprinkling some positive visualisation.

Keep your website and software up to date.

Passwords are merely the first layer of cyber security you can apply to your beauty salon online. In fact, there are a few more things to do to ensure your data is secured, and that includes regularly updating the software you use for dayto-day business management, as well as your website. Even if “tech” isn’t your thing, it is quite easy to ensure your online presence is regularly updated.

Most software have the option to enable automatic updates. By enabling this feature, software will automatically update themselves whenever a new version is released. For your website, updates will vary depending on the content management systems (also known as CMS) that you use. CMS such as Shopify or Squarespace will automatically update while WordPress will require manual maintenance, which you can easily outsource to a web design agency like Digital Health Co.

Train your employees on cyber security.

Keeping your salon safe online will require your whole team to be involved along with you. Just as the Australian government has cyber security requirements for businesses, it is important for you and your staff to be familiar with them. A beauty salon can develop its own cyber policies which may outline expectations for employee behaviour and actions. These policies should also cover topics such as password management, email security, and safe browsing practices.

Training your employees on cybersecurity might involve updating your onboarding process when hiring new staff and conducting training every 6 months with the whole team. Cyber threats are constantly evolving so it is important to provide ongoing training to ensure your employees and yourself are up to date on the latest cybersecurity best practices.

As a business owner or manager, it is important to lead by example and follow cybersecurity best practices yourself. This will help create a culture of cybersecurity within your salon and reinforce the importance of these practices to your staff.

Audit your online presence.

If you’ve signed up for a zillion software, tried different CMS and run multiple social accounts, we recommend auditing your online presence. This could be by listing where you have open and unused accounts, looking at cybersecurity policies (or highlighting what you’d like to cover if non-existent), and assessing your current password list.

For example, if you’ve recently been notified that your logins have been compromised or that your data has been part of a leak, an audit can help you assess and address potential threats. There are a hundred things that could be audited within your business to ensure it is safe online and if you’re unsure where to start, Digital Health Co has put together a simple and comprehensive checklist to get you started.

Practise common sense.

Most online scams can be prevented with the right security measure, but also common sense. A scam email will use a random and unverified email address just as a so-called government text might come from a regular number. Training your team to look at the provenance of a communication and assessing its legitimacy before taking any actions (such as opening a file or filling out a form) is a quick yet efficient way to keep your business safe.

Overall, cybersecurity will come down to understanding your business data, its value, and the best practices you can implement to protect it.

Tech Toolbox: LastPass.

Along with applying cybersecurity best practices, you can use certain tech tools to keep your beauty salon safe online. The software LastPass is perfect to keep your login details stored securely in one place. You can organise them by category, share them with your team, and update them easily. With LastPass, you can also safely store your business credit card information, which is great if you have staff regularly placing wholesale orders but don’t want the card to be “remembered for next time” by a software.

Download your FREE cyber security checklist. At Digital Health Co we blend our beauty background and tech expertise to bring you curated, effective, and growth-centric digital solutions. We understand all-too-well your treatments and services, your clients’ needs, and your business goals.

www.lastpass.com

Download your free checklist to cover all bases and start you on your journey to protecting you and your client’s data (think broad spectrum SPF 50+) from devious attacks.

www.digitalhealthco.com.au/mocha