NIST Releases Cybersecurity Guide for Solopreneurs and Non-Employer Firms

New NIST Guide for Solopreneurs

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released a new guide titled "Small Business Cybersecurity: Non-Employer Firms (NIST Cybersecurity White Paper 50)". This publication is designed to assist self-employed individuals, often referred to as solopreneurs, in protecting their businesses from cyberattacks. It addresses the cybersecurity needs of the more than 28 million non-employer firms in the U.S. economy.

Tailored for Non-Experts

The guide is written in lay language, making it accessible to individuals without prior cybersecurity expertise. Daniel Eliot, one of the publication's authors, stated that the resource aims to provide actionable steps that solopreneurs can implement with limited technical knowledge or minimal financial investment. It introduces the fundamentals of a small-business cybersecurity program and offers an approach to its implementation.

The publication assumes no familiarity with cybersecurity or the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF), providing context and definitions for technical terms.

Update and Focus

This new publication is an update to the previous "Small Business Information Security: The Fundamentals (NISTIR 7621)". While the earlier version covered broader information security for various small business sizes, the updated guide narrows its scope to concentrate specifically on protecting digital systems from malicious attacks for non-employer firms. It derives its guidelines from the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF 2.0).

Key Recommendations

The guide includes a primer on cybersecurity and how it integrates with a successful business plan. It highlights actionable best practices that reduce cybersecurity risks, such as regular data backups and maintaining updated software.