Printers: The Weak Links on Your Network?

Hackers love the office printer. Over half of companies forget to include them in their security plans, leaving them an open door for attack – and hackers are all too happy to walk right in. Here are five ways your printer is putting your network at risk, and how to secure your office printer.

1. Network Vulnerability – Your network is only as secure as its weakest link. Once access is gained to one device, it’s easy for hackers to infiltrate other devices on your network. If you’re overlooking your printer in your security plans, you’re creating an opening for hackers to use to attack your network. It’s essential to incorporate your printer in your security plans from the start and keep firmware up-to-date.

2. Printer Attacks – Sometimes hackers attack your printer specifically to disrupt your business. They can deny you access to your device, running print jobs, sending faxes, and changing settings, which can grind business to a halt. User authentication and other security measures can help protect your printer.

3. Data Breaches – Your printer has a hard drive, and that hard drive stores data from all the prints, scans, and faxes you’ve done. If hackers gain access to your printer, they can take all this data, wreaking havoc for your company, employees, and customers. Encrypting your print data and regularly erasing the hard drive can help prevent hackers from getting and using this data.

4. Stolen Prints – Not all attacks are digital; some are as easy as taking prints off the print tray. These stolen prints could compromise sensitive data or violate privacy and other compliance laws. Your employees should never leave prints unattended on the tray. By putting user authentication standards in place and adding pull printing, you can help minimize this possibility.

5. Mobile Printing – The more devices you allow to access your printer, the more risk you’re undertaking. Many companies today want to enable mobile printing, which opens you up to more risk. It’s essential to have user authentication standards in place to only allow certain people and devices access to your network.

For many companies the printer is the weakest link, allowing hackers an open door to their network and their data. If you’re not including your office printer in your security strategies, you’re leaving yourself open to data breaches, denial of service attacks, and other security problems for your entire network. Ask us about our solutions to keep your network protected and your data secure.