Fiber network security: How to make your tenants feel protected online

From business operations to administrative tasks, a strong internet connection has become an essential utility for any commercial property application. Because of increased reliance on the internet, fiber network and internet service provider security have become central considerations for businesses seeking commercial spaces that offer infrastructure to reduce their exposure to cybercrime.

The financial cost of this risk can't be overstated. Research suggests that large enterprise organizations suffer an average loss of more than $4 million per security breach. For small businesses, the figure tends to average around $25,000—still large enough to threaten a company's solvency, even before accounting for potentially lasting brand damage caused by the breach's impact on customers and clients.

As the provider of internet infrastructure, commercial multi-tenant unit (MTU) owners can reinforce and improve their internet security through simple choices regarding the type of internet connection they offer, as well as additional security software and hardware infrastructure to support each tenant's security efforts. Investing in MTU internet security can improve tenant satisfaction, reduce unit vacancies and increase rental revenue across your portfolio.

Common internet security risks faced by MTUs

Commercial tenants face the constant threat of cybercrime in numerous forms. As a property owner or manager, you can't fully protect your tenants from these security threats, in large part because you only control the infrastructure enabling their connection and network. This means cyberattacks like phishing—which uses fraudulent emails and links to trick users into sharing personal information—are risks that the tenants themselves must proactively defend against.

That said, your property's security software and hardware can complement tenant security efforts and prevent breaches and attacks before they start. Common security risks MTUs can help mitigate include:

• Malware. Intrusive software like viruses, spyware and other malicious programs can be installed by cybercriminals with the goal of stealing your data and damaging your computer.
• Line tapping. This security threat installs a splitter onto a cable internet line to manually hack into and use the property's internet connection.
• Wireless network breaches. If wireless networks are set up and supported by the MTU, rather than the tenant, these threats would fall under the domain of your property's security solutions.
• Port scanning attacks. These sophisticated security threats scan available nodes in a network for potential vulnerabilities. The nodes can then be targeted and compromised with a greater degree of success. In many cases, port scanning is a preliminary attack used to inform and support a larger coordinated attack.
• Distributed denial-of-service (DDoS). This type of attack floods a tenant's destination or network resource with traffic in an attempt to render that destination temporarily or permanently unavailable. DDoS attacks can be incredibly costly and debilitating for your clients.

How MTU owners can improve internet security at their properties

With more and more commercial tenants seeking out commercial properties that offer built-in internet service, MTU owners have an opportunity to increase the value and attractiveness of their available units by implementing cost-effective internet security solutions.

Property owners can choose from a number of software and hardware solutions designed to support multiple commercial units at scale. Some of the most common solutions that can directly enhance internet security for each of your tenants include:

• Firewalls. Available as both software and hardware solutions, firewalls can monitor incoming data packets for suspicious contents, adding an additional layer of security and scanning on top of the firewalls and security solutions installed by individual tenants.
• Intrusion prevention systems (IPS). While firewalls automatically block and filter out suspicious traffic, an IPS is more proactive in assuring security by sending out alerts to network administrators when possible intrusions arise.
• Managed Wi-Fi. MTUs can provide a standardized and consistent security infrastructure across all units located within their property. By managing Wi-Fi networks on their own, they can also ensure prompt updating and adjustments to network security best practices, keeping this infrastructure up to date with emerging threats.

The benefits of fiber network security for multi-tenant units

In addition to the aforementioned security hardware and software solutions, MTU owners and managers can further improve their internet security and overall quality of internet service by investing in fiber-optic internet for their entire property.

Compared to cable internet, the security risks of fiber-optic internet are greatly reduced thanks to the threat of line tapping being eliminated. While a cable line can easily be cut into and split off, the fine optical cables used in fiber internet are useless once they've been cut, resulting in superior infrastructure to support your tenants.

Security risks are also minimized by the fast, consistent speeds that fiber internet can provide, supporting the host of internal security software and hardware solutions your clients use. With faster, more reliable internet, firewalls, antivirus software and other solutions are better able to monitor and respond to threats in real time as they emerge. Fast responses play an integral role in mitigating risk and overall losses, even in rare situations where a security breach occurs.

In addition to enhanced fiber-optic security, your tenants will enjoy faster internet that doesn't suffer from fluctuating bandwidth during peak periods of usage. With fiber's consistent service and blazing-fast speeds, your property's management office will experience far fewer internet support calls from your tenants, improving their customer experience and freeing up management to focus their attention on other property needs.

Are you ready to bring the benefits of secure, lightning-fast fiber internet to your commercial properties? Explore Ting's enterprise-level fiber internet service today.