How to Secure Your Dealership’s Data with a Fully Integrated DMS
Adding five, ten, or twenty more locations to your dealership? As heavy equipment dealerships expand and outgrow their entry-level business operating systems, they need a better way to streamline and unify their operations.
Keeping up with growth is a significant challenge, and dealerships need to find ways to maintain the security and integrity of their business operations. In today’s digital landscape, cybersecurity has become a critical concern for companies of all sizes, especially with the growing threat of ransomware.
The Growing Threat of Ransomware in Cybersecurity
In today’s digital landscape, cybersecurity has become a critical concern for companies of all sizes. Ransomware poses a significant threat to businesses, with the potential to cause irreparable damage to their reputation, finances, and operations.
This type of malicious software encrypts a company’s data, making it unusable until a ransom is paid to the attacker. Since the ransom is typically demanded in cryptocurrencies, tracing the attacker is difficult. With more frequent and sophisticated attacks in recent years, businesses across all sectors are targeted.
The aftermath of a ransomware attack can be severe, resulting in data loss, system downtime, and costly recovery efforts. Even worse, the attacker may steal sensitive data like customer information or financial data for further cybercrime activities.
According to Gartner, “the cost of recovery and the resulting downtime in the aftermath of a ransomware attack, as well as the reputational damage, can be 10 to 15 times more than the ransom.” Additionally, 46% of all cyber breaches impact businesses with fewer than 1,000 employees, according to Verizon’s 2021 Data Breach Investigations Report.
The Solution
What to do, then? As dealerships grow and expand their operations, keeping up separate systems to track equipment sales, rentals, service and repair, parts sales, and financials is no longer sustainable—or safe. Organizations must make strategic decisions when selecting their tech stack to ensure they can adapt to market changes effectively and safely.
Enhance Your Dealership’s Cybersecurity
An excellent place to start is by consolidating all business systems into a fully integrated Dealer Management System (DMS).
A DMS helps dealerships keep track of everything from equipment sales, rentals, service and repair, parts sales, and financials. Think of it like a giant toolbox that helps you organize and manage your tools and resources in one place to enable you to run your dealership smoothly.
The best part is that it doesn’t stop there. The beauty of having a fully integrated system is that everyone can benefit from the tool to make their jobs easier. From maintenance technicians who need to handle their maintenance tasks, update their work status, and even receive new assignments directly from their phones to the finance team that needs to generate comprehensive financial reports and provide real-time insights into the dealership’s performance. Having a centralized system is ideal for keeping data secure and helps give everyone the ability to be more productive.
While there are numerous advantages to having a comprehensive, fully integrated DMS, let’s concentrate on its security benefits.
Harnessing the Security Benefits
Here are the top four ways to harness its convenience:
1. Centralized Data Management
With a centralized system, all data related to the dealership’s operations is stored in a single location. This makes monitoring and managing access to sensitive data easier, reducing the risk of data breaches or unauthorized access. Additionally, a centralized system enables you to implement granular access controls, ensuring that only authorized personnel can access specific data.
2. Secure Data Storage
All data related to the dealership’s operations can be stored in a secure location, either on-premises or in the cloud. This provides protection against data loss or corruption due to hardware failure, theft, or natural disasters. Additionally, a DMS can provide backup and disaster recovery solutions, ensuring that critical data is always available even during a disaster.
3. Secure Access Controls
A fully integrated DMS can provide robust access controls to protect sensitive data from unauthorized access. This includes authentication and authorization mechanisms that ensure only authorized personnel can access specific data. Additionally, a DMS can provide audit logs and activity monitoring features that enable you to monitor user activity and identify potential security threats.
4. Audit Trails
Finally, a fully integrated DMS also provides an audit trail of all document activity, such as who accessed a file, when it was accessed, and what changes were made. This makes it easy to track document history and identify any security breaches.
No system is completely immune to security threats … It’s essential to implement strong security practices and policies to help protect your business and your data.
Eugene Cherish, Certified: Microsoft Security | Suite Engine Partner
To recap, a fully integrated DMS for equipment dealerships offers reliability, security, and a flexible solution that grows with you. From centralized data management to secure data storage and access controls, a DMS can help a dealership ensure the security and integrity of its business operations.
Protect Your Data with the Right DMS and Security Infrastructure
To ensure maximum protection, it’s crucial to investigate the technology behind your DMS and its security infrastructure. Not all DMS are created equal, so be sure to ask critical questions when evaluating a DMS; some lack the necessary backup power to provide cybersecurity protection.
Ransomware attacks can cause significant damage to a company’s operations and reputation. As a result, companies must take proactive measures to safeguard themselves against such attacks. By implementing the tips mentioned above, dealerships can minimize the risk of a ransomware attack and reduce its impact if one does occur.
A comprehensive DMS solution must include a built-in security system capable of preventing unauthorized access to your database and information. Luckily, you have found RPM by Suite Engine, fully powered by Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central – the leader in the enterprise resource-planning platforms space.
Remember, security is a team effort, and with Microsoft on your side, you have a proven leader in data protection. Plus, with Suite Engine’s team of experts with over 20 years of experience in the equipment industry, you have an ideal partner to assist with your digital transformation.
To see RPM by Suite Engine in action, contact us to schedule a personalized demo.
The RPM Experience
RPM + Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is an end-to-end equipment dealership management system built in the Microsoft Cloud to help businesses grow with confidence. Streamline day-to-day operational processes like counter sales, rental invoicing, purchasing, cash management, and reporting—all while protecting financial information and customer data with enterprise-level security.
Suite Engine’s first application to market was RPM in 2019, and since then, we’ve added integrations designed to leverage job apps, such as Shop Floor Insight by Insight Works, Easy PDF, AvaTax, and more. Watch for more productivity apps designed to streamline processes for your equipment business needs.
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