How to Stop Cyber Attacks From Destroying Your Business | Entrepreneurship | Ramon Ray | Presented by Bitdefender

Small businesses have become the number one target for cyber attacks, yet most entrepreneurs don’t realize how vulnerable they are until it’s too late. One attack could wipe out years of growth and instantly damage customer trust. In this episode, presented by Bitdefender, Ramon explains why cybersecurity is essential for small business owners and how they can protect their business from today’s digital threats without hiring an IT team or becoming a tech expert. In this episode, Hala and Ramon will discuss: (00:00) Introduction (03:03) Entrepreneurship Lessons and Personal Branding (06:09) Public Speaking Strategies to Build Influence (09:51) Why Small Businesses are at Risk of Cyber Threats (12:21) Common Cyber Attacks and How to Prevent Them (18:37) Cyber Attack Scenarios and What to Do (28:49) How Creator Entrepreneurs Build Audience Trust (33:15) How Entrepreneurs Profit by Embracing Failure Ramon Ray is a serial entrepreneur, bestselling author, keynote speaker, and small business expert. He is the publisher of ZoneofGenius.com and has spoken to global audiences on major stages, including SXSW, VeeCon, and the Aspire Tour. As Bitdefender’s Small Business Ambassador, Ramon helps entrepreneurs protect their businesses against cybersecurity threats. Sponsored By: Bitdefender Ultimate Small Business Security: Save 30% when you go to https://www.bitdefender.com/profiting Resources Mentioned: Ramon’s Book, The Celebrity CEO: bit.ly/CelebCEO Ramon’s Website: zoneofgenius.com Active Deals - youngandprofiting.com/deals Key YAP Links Reviews - ratethispodcast.com/yap YouTube - youtube.com/c/YoungandProfiting LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/htaha Instagram - instagram.com/yapwithhala Social + Podcast Services: yapmedia.com Transcripts - youngandprofiting.com/episodes-new Disclaimer: This episode is a paid partnership with Bitdefender. Sponsored content helps support our podcast and continue bringing valuable insights to our audience. Entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurship Podcast, Business, Business Podcast, Self Improvement, Self-Improvement, Personal Development, Starting a Business, Strategy, Investing, Sales, Selling, Psychology, Productivity, Entrepreneurs, AI, Artificial Intelligence, Technology, Marketing, Negotiation, Money, Finance, Side Hustle, Startup, Mental Health, Career, Leadership, Mindset, Health, Growth Mindset, Passive Income, Online Business, Solopreneur, Founder, Networking

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Speaker 00

  I've recognized this for a while and I think as technology evolves, crime evolves with it, gets better and better. So it's a constant cat and mouse game of catch up.

• 0:11Hala Taha?

  You've built and scaled and exited so many different companies. You're a serial entrepreneur, a motivational speaker, an author. Talk to us about some of the biggest lessons.

• 0:21Speaker 00

  What you see in the headlines of amazing media that we see on TV. It may be different than the reality of experience.

• 0:29Hala Taha?

  Running business is not just about putting your face out there, growing. It's also about making sure you protect your business. What is it about small businesses that make them more vulnerable to these cybersecurity attacks?

• 0:41Speaker 00

  We're so busy, we're clicking, clicking, clicking, clicking. Oh no, I just clicked on a text. Now I got hacked.

• 0:48Hala Taha?

  What are some of the common cybersecurity attacks that you see happen to small businesses these days?

• 0:53Speaker 00

  You have phishing, you have ransomware and you have malware.

• 0:57Hala Taha?

  Are there certain types of industries that need to be hyper alert?

• 1:02Speaker 00

  Hala, I'm telling you, it's all of us and the reason why, because...

• 1:21Hala Taha?

  Yeah fam, you've got your hands full running your business, but here's the hard truth and I want you to listen up. Small businesses are now the number one target for cyber attacks. One click, one weak password, one moment of distraction could cost you everything that you've built as an entrepreneur. And that's on top of everything else you've got to juggle. One minute we're thinking about customer service, the next minute hiring, managing people, putting out fires, and then also trying to keep our eyes on growth. It's a lot being an entrepreneur. So how do we balance it all without burning out or losing sight of what actually drives our business forward? And at the same time, protect ourselves from the hidden risks that nobody talks about? That's why I'm so excited today to spend a little bit of time on cybersecurity, something we don't talk about often enough,

• 2:06Hala Taha?

  with small business champion and serial entrepreneur Ramon... Ray. Ramon has started five companies. He's sold three of them and he's a sought after voice on entrepreneurship and small business success. He's also the small business ambassador for Bitdefender, one of the world's leading cybersecurity companies where he helps entrepreneurs safeguard their businesses in today's digital first world. On top of that, Ramon has spoken on some of the biggest stages in the world like South by Southwest, VCon and the Aspire Tour, and he's the publisher of zoneofgenius.com and the author of The Celebrity CEO. In today's episode, we're going to be talking about the hidden risks that can threaten everything you've worked so hard to build. Ramon will break down what those risks can look like and more importantly,

• 2:49Hala Taha?

  how you can protect your business without getting lost in all that tech jargon. We'll make it as easy as possible for you guys to understand. If you're an entrepreneur trying to juggle it all and still sleep at night, this conversation is one you don't want to miss. Ramon, welcome to Young and Profiting Podcast.

• 3:06Speaker 00

  Thank you, Hala, for having me. Appreciate it. I know we're gonna have a good time.

• 3:08Hala Taha?

  You've got just so much under your belt that I'm excited to talk to you about. And the first question that I have is really about your entrepreneurship journey. So you've built and sold multiple businesses, which is every entrepreneur's dream is to actually build and then exit a company. So talk to us about some of the biggest lessons that you've learned over the years being an entrepreneur.

• 3:29Speaker 00

  Sure. I think that one is that what you see in the headlines of amazing media that we see on TV, it may be different than the reality of experience. And what I mean by that, Hala, for example, is yes, I've sold a few businesses, but a lot of them were just relationships. Let's say you and I, "Yo, what's up, girl? Listen, I built this for seven years. Oh, you want it? Okay. What are your needs? Can we do it?" Or "Yo, what's up?" to my dude or somebody who I know. So it's not that cavalier. There is contracts, there's due diligence, but it's not some billion-dollar valuation meeting in the ballroom of your big hotel. Point is, it starts with relationships, at least how I've done it at my level. It's relationships.

• 4:08Hala Taha?

  So, a lot of small business owners wear a lot of hats. And I'm sure you've been there, being an entrepreneur, where you're the CEO, you might be the CFO, the COO, the CMO. What do you tell somebody who's just so overwhelmed as a new entrepreneur having to wear all these hats?

• 4:28Speaker 00

  The biggest thing is, one, prioritize. You have to be able to prioritize adeptly. Number two is delegation. And now, depending on the type of business you're running and what you're doing, maybe you don't have a team of three, four, or five. It could be just you, but either way, delegate in some way. Number three, breathe. In an ideal scenario where there's no major literal fires to put out or anything like that, life's gonna go on. By God's grace, you're gonna wake up again. So you know the meaning. Okay, you didn't get that import done today. You didn't get that video edited today. You didn't call that client today. That's okay. Calm down. Do it tomorrow.

• 5:04Hala Taha?

  Like I mentioned earlier, you're an author and you have a book called Celebrity CEO. And you're really a proponent of putting your face out there, having a personal brand, being the face of your company. Why do you think that's so important, especially in 2025 as an entrepreneur?

• 5:21Speaker 00

  You know, Hall, I think that we know the large brands, take your pick, famous car company, coffee shop company somewhere, whatever it is, the brands that, and I don't mean this disrespectfully, we don't really care who the founders were. We go get our transactional item from them in some way. But I find that for the smaller business owner, Ramon included, our smile, our handshake, how we show up, how we sound, it was southern accent, northern accent, all those things that goes towards our brand. And as I said before, right, our relationships. So I'm a firm believer, I think, for the smaller business that your biggest weapon, your competitive advantage, it very well could be you because relationships. Now, when you're growing a $20 million business, $10 million business, doesn't mean that

• 6:06Speaker 00

  that doesn't matter, but it's a different game you're playing.

• 6:09Hala Taha?

  So you've spoken on amazing stages. You did the Aspire Tour. You've done Gary Vee's events. You've done South by Southwest. So talk to us about how you even get on these stages and also maybe one or two tips of how you make sure you do a great job.

• 6:26Speaker 00

  If you wish to be on big stages, making big impact, are you really good on stage? Honest with yourself, not your mama said it, but are you really good on stage? Number two, is that really good on stage, validated by the audience and by your clients, by your sponsors, others calling you back? Number three, videotape yourself. Watch yourself on stage. You may cringe a few times. Number four, if you're really good at it, I would suggest people do the power of self-promotion. And I know you know this well. Take now the good videos, you know, edit them a bit. Showcase them out. So I can go on in this, but I'll pause a bit. But I think that between being very good at it, self-promoting yourself, there are people in your circle

• 7:11Speaker 00

  who are gonna say, knock, knock, knock, knock, knock. Hey, Ramon, hey, Hala, hey, the audience here. Can you come to our event and what's your fee? That's what I do.

• 7:19Hala Taha?

  If somebody had to decide their fee for the first time, what would you say?

• 7:25Speaker 00

  Here's what I would say. Look at the people who we know. Take the Damon Johns of the world, all Sharks on Shark Tank, and Marcus Lomotis, whoever we want, and you know, the main people we see all the time. What are their fees, Hala? 150, 170, 110, I mean, 110,000, something in that range, maybe 80,000, but that's something. Now, they're getting that fee because of their fame. They're getting that fee oftentimes because they can attract an audience to said event. Ramon Ray, I'm very good, but I'm not the names I've mentioned. So therefore, if it's helpful in my calculation, my fee is 25,000. I can sit without stuttering, without thinking, oh, that's high. I believe that's the value I can give to an audience. So that's how I do it.

• 8:06Speaker 00

  Now, somebody just starting out, assuming you're really good, like you're gonna slay, you're gonna drop the mic. Start at three. Start at five, see what happens. But I'd say go a little higher. Because let's say you want Hala to hire you, Ramon to hire you. All we're gonna do is say, hmm, seven's a bit rich. Could you do five? And you're gonna be happy.

• 8:26Hala Taha?

  And don't forget, you need to get your reps in to actually get good. So you might be doing some gigs for free. I did a lot of gigs for free before I ever got paid. Russell Brunson is my client. I monetized his podcast. He's been my client for a couple of years. I do all his events for free till this day. Because it's to my benefit to be in front of 7,000 people onstage with Tony Robbins. So I don't need to get paid if Russell asks me to speak, right? So there's certain opportunities where you just do it for free.

• 8:55Speaker 00

  And Hala, I love that. That's all I wanted to echo with you and vibe with you on that. People sneer sometimes, depending on the circles of probably maybe some of our mutual friends, free. I'll do free all day, as you said, depending on the opportunity. The proverbial Oprah Winfrey or Russell Brunson calls me. Don't pay me. I've done work with Seth Godin before. You think I said, well, Seth, let me think about it. Hmm, what are you gonna pay me? No, no, no, no, no. Yes, let's work together. We will figure out the money later on. So I wanted to echo that. And even though just starting, assuming you're practicing getting in the reps with Hollis. And it's true, the reps are important. And if you're really good, you say, hey, I'll show up happy to speak for free. Maybe pay my flight, pay my hotel, if you don't mind. Is there a food allowance? Would love it. And you slay it. Now you've built a relationship.

• 9:40Speaker 00

  Now people say, oh, we want to have you again. Now you can earn the right to get money. So yes, I love that aspect of quote unquote free, but with caveats. What's the value? What's the ROI?

• 9:50Hala Taha?

  Exactly. So running a business is not just about putting your face out there, growing. It's also about making sure you protect your business. And I know that you're ambassador for Bitdefender. So talk to us about when you first realized that cybersecurity was something that you needed to pay attention to as an entrepreneur. Did something happen where you're like, oh, my gosh, this is my wake up call?

• 10:16Speaker 00

  Yeah, I think it's one of those things that oftentimes we can't forget about the power of being more secure and the power of cybersecurity. I'm 52 years old and I've been in this business of content for a long time. Hackers, malware, malicious people, bad digital actors have been around for a long time. There used to be these things called payphones. You put a quarter in, it's these little metal things and you push it into the slot. It makes a noise, ka-ching. Holla, there were hackers back then using whistles to break into the phone. So my answer to the question is, I've recognized this for a while. And I think as technology evolves, crime evolves with it, gets better and better. So it's a constant cat and mouse game of catch up, which is why it brings us to one aspect.

• 10:58Speaker 00

  I'm honored to work with Bitdefender and help educate all small businesses, all entrepreneurs. We need to be more secure.

• 11:04Hala Taha?

  What is it about small businesses that make them more vulnerable to these cybersecurity attacks?

• 11:09Speaker 00

  Yeah, I think there's a few things. The larger brands, all that think of any household name brand that we see on the proverbial TV, they may have whole departments, they may have a 2,000-person cybersecurity team, they may spend hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars on cybersecurity, and as you know, Hala, guess what? They still get hacked. But for the small business owner, for the entrepreneur, for someone like myself, I work in a home office, I got a small remote team, I'm not thinking about that. I don't have five people and gleaming computers like some sci-fi movie protecting me. So I think that's why for us, and also, Hala, as you mentioned earlier, we're so busy, we're clicking, clicking, clicking, clicking, oh, oh, no, I just clicked on a text I thought

• 11:51Speaker 00

  was from Hala, but it was phishing and it wasn't from her, now I got hacked. So I think those are some of the reasons why.

• 11:58Hala Taha?

  Yeah, and I think this is even more prevalent for creator entrepreneurs, like we were just talking about, the need to put our face out there. I don't know how many times my team gets messages where people are pretending to be me, or Jenna Kutcher's in my network, and I keep getting emails from people pretending to be her. And so it's just so scary. For people who think that this is not a big deal, what are some of the common cybersecurity attacks that you see happen to small businesses these days?

• 12:26Speaker 00

  Absolutely, and I want to address that point because I'm in the same boat as you. I think as social media goes, we're all producing content, our faces are out there, our voices are out there. This is what we do. Very few people, even somebody who's just, said in an honorable way, just running a bakery, they're posting on Instagram. So I just wanted to address, that's a big issue. Same with me. People, Ramon, is this you? It looks like me, it's a shaved head, black guy with glasses, smiling handsomely, but no, that's not me behind the account, so I wanted to recognize that. So a few things that we can do. I think, one, definitely do your best to have as complex as passwords as you can. That's one. Number two, can you try to, please, people, try to change your passwords every so often, whatever that every so often may mean for you.

• 13:10Speaker 00

  A big thing, even though that is even increasingly becoming less Secure, enable two factor authentication. Half the people probably know what it is. For those who don't, that's that little annoying inconvenience, but very secure. You log into your bank or you log into Starbucks and your phone gets a text that you have to enter a code in to log in. So that's number three. Also, Holla's education, you know, even my team, it's a remote team, even if people I work with employer or not. Just educating them on what I know. Hey, listen, here's the procedure where we're going to pay somebody. If it's over a thousand, here's even a more enhanced procedure. Those are a few things people can do. And I think actually what you asked me was also some of the attacks. You have phishing, which is masquerading as somebody else.

• 13:53Speaker 00

  You have ransomware and that's the dirty one where your data is fine. You just can't get to it unless you pay someone money. So you have ransomware and you have malware. You're going to a website, you're going to a page, you're downloading an app that infects your computer. So those are a few things you have also the attacks where it's some denial of service, kind of a fancy word meaning. An overwhelming force is bombarding your servers, which means legitimate people cannot access it. So those are a few of the common types of attack. And then earlier I addressed some things people can do.

• 14:25Hala Taha?

  I feel like I've had all these attacks with me. The other day I remember with my website, we just kept getting somebody who kept submitting contact forms. And they just did that until the website basically froze and nobody could get on the website. So it was somebody who's trying to attack our company. It's just so crazy. What are the motives? What do these people want?

• 14:47Speaker 00

  Wouldn't it be nice? You and I should have like a big event. Hey, all the hackers, could you come together? What do you all want? Like, could you be nice? But I think a few things and you're right. I've gone through the same thing. And what's annoying about that is that they're overwhelming it, which makes it the real customers can't get in. And or I'm sure your team or you have seen the forms coming in. I get the same one, you know, 102 dot three dot dash, 102 dot three dot zero. And I'm like, really? But I think a few things they want. One, some people are just being malicious and have nothing else to do with their time. That's a few of the people. I wish more people were just that the case. Number two, keep in mind, Holla, it's easier and easier to have an attack because the tools are easier. Anybody with the basics of knowledge, if you can set up a Facebook page, if you can download an app to your phone, you can download malicious apps,

• 15:32Speaker 00

  hit a button and do it. So that's number two. And of course, the criminal element, the biggest ones that are sometimes backed by state actors are backed by criminal organizations, not just guys and gals on the street, but behind computer keyboards. They want to get money from Hala. They want to steal Ramon's data. They know that, okay, 10,000, 20,000, a million, whatever those people are in his database. How can we harvest that information, combine it with what else we have, create a digital persona, and maybe we can apply for five million credit cards? Most of them won't get through, but if X percentage get through, they've made easy money. So at the highest level, money is some motivation, however it's packaged. Reselling the data or proactively yourself getting the data and of course,

• 16:16Speaker 00

  notwithstanding breaking into your bank account directly, which is a bit harder. So hence the data and manipulation of that is often what they want to do.

• 16:24Hala Taha?

  Digging deeper on that, are there certain types of industries or types of companies that need to be hyper alert of people wanting to do these cyber attacks on them?

• 16:36Speaker 00

  I wish it was. Now, for sure, if you're in the HIPAA, and I forgot what HIPAA stands for, but you know, you're in the healthcare space, there's definitely rules and regulations regulating you. If Ramon gets into the new gold bullion industry, I'm gonna have to take a bit more secure than if I didn't. But Hala, I'm telling you, it's all of us. And the reason why, because from metaphorically, one button I hit, I can hit a button and say, go find me all the unprotected networks, go find me everyone that has low threat levels and go attack them all at once. So that's the problem that makes it easier now. They're not cherry picking. We're just gonna attack pharmaceutical. Nah, we're gonna attack everybody,

• 17:20Speaker 00

  see who we can get through, and now we'll pay more attention to them.

• 17:26Hala Taha?

  This episode of Young and Profiting is brought to you by Bitdefender, a global leader in cybersecurity. Most small businesses think that they're too small to be targeted, but the truth is, we're prime targets for cyber attacks. One breach could derail everything that you've worked for. But here's the good news. Protecting yourself doesn't have to mean becoming a tech expert. That's why I turn to Bitdefender's ultimate small business security. It's a powerful, all-in-one cybersecurity solution for small businesses. It's designed specifically for business owners who don't have a dedicated IT team. It protects all of your team's devices, scans for phishing and scams, manages passwords, and even checks the dark web for leaked info. Unlimited VPN allows your team to work securely from anywhere. The dashboard is super simple. I set it up in minutes, added my whole team,

• 18:11Hala Taha?

  and now everybody is covered, whether they're in the office or working remotely. No IT staff required. Bitdefender makes cybersecurity so easy so you can focus on what really matters: growing your business and serving your customers. See if Bitdefender Ultimate Small Business Security is the right fit for your small business. Save 30% when you go to bitdefender.com/profitting. That's bitdefender.com/profitting for 30% off.

• 18:37Hala Taha?

  I want to play a fun game really quick.

• 18:39Speaker 00

  Let's do it.

• 18:40Hala Taha?

  I feel like it's a good time for a game. It's called Cyber Heist. So I'm basically going to go over a couple different fake scenarios. And you tell me, what do we do as an entrepreneur? What could we have done to prevent this? What can we do to placate the issue and make it better? So Scenario 1: The Fake CEO Wire Transfer. So hackers spoof your email and trick your finance manager into wiring $25,000 to a fake vendor account. How do hackers typically pull this off so convincingly? And what systems should small business owners have in place to make sure money never gets sent to the wrong hands?

• 19:21Speaker 00

  I love this. And so how this happens, it's very easy for technical people, which all hackers are, most of them, to spoof, to fake an email address. That's one. Or instead of it being from facebook.com, being from face...

• 19:36Speaker 00

  Boo.com and you just want to wear as it were. So that's how and the why it happens. The way around that is for any wire transaction to say, here's the policy. We will authenticate it. We will confirm that this is what you want to do via two pre authenticated methods. So for example, Hala, I'm going to call you back at this number. Doesn't matter what number you said to do it. Doesn't matter what number came in. I'm calling you back at a number we both agreed. Things like that and/or close the system. So I'll give credit to something like a bill.com or other services that are built to say, these are the two data points. The money transfers, our customers are already secure and validated and it will only be done there. Hala's assistant won't click at 3 a.m.

• 20:21Speaker 00

  Oh, Hala said to send Ramon $10 and she just clicks it and sends it from your account. No, no, no, no, no, no. So that's how to solve that.

• 20:28Hala Taha?

  Scenario two, the USB trap. An employee brings home a free USB stick from a conference and plugs it into their work laptop. What kind of damage could that one move cause? And how do you train a team so they don't fall for these low tech traps?

• 20:43Speaker 00

  Love it. And that's a very good scenario. Could have been a hacker, a bad actor who's targeted thousands of people at said event. You know, just put up a box of them and said, hey, free take one. Or it could have been targeted. Okay, we know Hala's team is coming and it could have been more malicious like they're targeting your organization, for example. How to prevent that? Number one, companies can lock down and secure their computers. And again, Bitdefender offers solutions like that to say, hey, listen, install our software on all your computers. These computers or this computer at this time, we're going to limit the external files that can go into the computer. So that's one. You can manually or programmatically limit what happens. Number two, of course, that's where you install software that says, hey, any file that comes

• 21:27Speaker 00

  in from an external source, we will automatically check. And number three is really just to have great policies and to educate people. You have an external USB drive. It wasn't from Staples or Amazon that you got new. It was random places. Do not use this. And that's where also that third leg I talked about before. Education, education, education. We tell our kids, don't get into the van of the guy you don't know. We tell them that since they're born. Employees need that same training.

• 21:54Hala Taha?

  And then also, there's softwares that actually block phishing and spoof domains before they can even hit your inbox. You could sign up with a company, I think like Bitdefender, that could actually block that stuff before your employees ever get it. I think we need that at Yap Media, because I didn't realize we could be blocking this, and I feel like it happens to us every day.

• 22:15Speaker 00

  Do you need to take a quick break? You want to go right now?

• 22:16Hala Taha?

  Yeah, I gotta just call my COO, like, why don't we have this?

• 22:20Speaker 00

  Yes, and that's one of the mission, one of the thing, you know, again, I don't want people to walk in a too paranoid world, but you take your phone, Holla, so you and I know each other, there's some trust, I hope, you know, as we, whatever it is, you can't walk in paranoid. Let's say it was a stranger, I come into your studio, "Hey, my name is Ramon, I was at the Starbucks and my battery died. Holla, do you mind, can I just," and I'm still talking and moving, "can I just go to your PC, plug in, and now my phone has malware that you don't realize, is now going to your computer." So, things like that, watch out from everyone, but especially from people you don't know, don't trust, and haven't been validated.

• 22:52Hala Taha?

  These are scary, so let's continue on with the cyber heist game. So, number three, you open your laptop on Monday and you find a ransom note. All your files are locked until you pay in Bitcoin. Walk us through what a smart entrepreneur should do first in that moment, and what they could do ahead of time to avoid being in this position, ever.

• 23:15Speaker 00

  First in that moment, it is tough, because those ransomware emails, more than not, are legit and real. Companies have said, "Hey, we've chosen to not pay, all our information is gone, and we're gonna start from scratch." Everybody can't do that, but that is a real, real scenario, because you ask what to do when it happens, so that's real. Number two, maybe get a security expert just to verify that it's not a double fake. Like, "Hey Holla, hey Ramon, your computer's locked, Holla's scrambling, getting ready to pay," or not, and realizes, "Oh, that wasn't what they said it was." So that's immediately, get to a security expert who can help you with that. What to do before, that's where it goes back, as you just hinted, as you said very eloquently, blocking those things before they come in, and then good backup.

• 24:00Speaker 00

  Now, you need to be careful, and this is where getting an expert to help, getting the right software to help, etc., because make sure you're not backing up bad data. But a good backup can solve that, because with the right forensic team, they can say, "Okay, great." This was infected seven days ago. Sorry, Hal. Sorry, Ramon. Sorry, millions of small businesses, right? We can't help you for the last seven days, but you know what? We can bring you back to eight days ago. You'll be good. So that's where a good backup comes in.

• 24:27Hala Taha?

  Is there actually a situation where somebody is asking for ransom for the data? You pay them and they actually give you your data back?

• 24:35Speaker 00

  Criminals are criminals, so I'm sure some don't, some do. But the best of it, I'm not a criminal, everybody, but let's say I had to get in the mind of their. Hal, I attack you. Don't I want you to pay me? Because when I attack your friend, you're gonna say, yeah. Ramon's a total loser. He's an evil person. But we paid the 175,000. Two seconds later, we had our data. So you see the kind of game they play. Go take your pick, Hal. Don't pay me the 150,000. Your data's gone. Or as some have done, yeah, we paid them and guess what? It was back.

• 25:03Hala Taha?

  Yeah. It's so interesting because I think as your company grows, you might start really acquiring valuable data. For example, I don't think we had that much of valuable data at first, but now I feel like we're starting to get a lot of valuable data that we need to protect.

• 25:18Speaker 00

  And keep in mind, the life's work that you built and did, you wouldn't want just that to be shut down. I'm sure you could do it again, right? YouTube and social and all the stuff, you do it again. But think of that, you're down for 30 days or 15 days. You're not sure which devices to use. It's just going back to your business, a media company. Sure, maybe you don't have banking information on it, but that's just your reputation. It's just, it's inconvenience.

• 25:41Hala Taha?

  Speaking of that, a hacker builds a fake LinkedIn profile, pretends to be an investor, wins your trust, and then sends a file loaded with malware. How do you spot the red flags in situations like this? And how do you protect yourself down without shutting down every potential opportunity?

• 25:56Speaker 00

  I love this. Here's what I've done and what people have been the kindness to do for me. Most times, Hal, you and I, for example, have a newer relationship, but I'm sure you've got people you rock with on a regular basis, Russell, whatever it is. You know their vibe. They just don't write that way. It sounds weird, but at least those are some things you have to do. Like, wait a minute. Hal said, and by the way, my doggy said hello. She's never said that before. Let me just double check. Calling her on her cell or texting her, that's what I know. So that's one. Number two, this goes back to be careful before you open or click. Somebody did this to me just two days ago. They were kind enough to say, Ramon, somebody asked me about SBA loans.

• 26:40Speaker 00

  Seems fishy, but was this you? And I said, yes. I referred them to you to ask for help in financing. She said, thank you. And now she's going to work with them. So that's a great example. She's in the financial industry. A lot of nefarious people come at her. And so she just did a quick double check. I confirmed she's off to the races.

• 26:59Hala Taha?

  OK, last one. So this sounds crazy, but I've heard horror stories about this. It's real. So hackers can sneak into your office network through something as random as a smart fridge on Wi-Fi. How does that even work? And what should business owners know about securing their smart devices and IoT gadgets?

• 27:18Speaker 00

  So your smart fridge is a computer. Your smart fridge is plugged into your network, either wired or wireless. It's even more advanced than a copier, even to the same principle. So once a hacker gets into your smart fridge, which in itself could have its own access point, it could be broadcasting its own Wi-Fi signal. It's just a fridge challah. It just has some yogurt and stale bananas inside. Why do we have to secure that? But guess what? That's the weak point. So the hacker gets into your smart fridge, and all they do is maybe do a simple code change, something very innocuous, which exposes your entire network. So that's why even your IoT devices and a good security consultant, again,

• 28:02Speaker 00

  can set up your router, your network, all these things and segment them for you. These are IoT devices. They should only be acting a certain way. This, however, is a server. This should act a certain way. So that's where segmenting your network and working with a security professional at that level and installing good software, that's where those kind of things can help out.

• 28:21Hala Taha?

  And all of these different scenarios actually can be protected by using a service like Bitdefender.

• 28:27Speaker 00

  That is correct.

• 28:28Hala Taha?

  So you don't need an IT team. You don't need a staff of 20 people. You can work with a company like Bitdefender that can protect you from all of these different malware issues, the ransomware issues, the phishing attempts, the IoT hacking. There's so many things to worry about, and we're not. Most of us at least are not IT professionals that have experience with that. All right, so let's move on to trust beyond just cybersecurity. Let's talk about trust with an audience, right? So you've been able to build an audience. You're speaking on stages like we talked about. You've written books. How do you build trust with your audience?

• 29:05Speaker 00

  One of the things that I enjoy doing and what my clients, what the sponsors I work with have said that they appreciate, but what I'm about to tell you is I always say I have no right to talk to the audience, to engage with the audience from stage if I don't know them. So how do I know them? As you mentioned, I've done it at Aspire Tour. I've done it at VCon with Gary Vaynerchuk, done it at the biggest events in the world. I go through the audience beforehand. Sounds simple, but I find that not all speakers do. Many in fact don't. They like to stay in the green room. I get it. But I'll go, let's say, Holly, you're in the audience. You're a small business nobody in an honorable way, right? Hey, my name is Ramon, which you know already because you're the attendee. What's your name? Oh, I'm Hala. I'm from Utah. Why are you here? Well, we have a lawn care business. You get what I mean?

• 29:50Speaker 00

  Do that three, four, five times. That's the super hack and I can mention more, but that's the one thing I do before I get on stage. I want to walk through the audience and just greet four, five, six people. Now that gives me a room temperature. That gives me a vibe. I have a feeling just by talking to 10 out of 1,000 of who I'm serving, who I'm talking to. That's what I do.

• 30:11Hala Taha?

  And I feel like the same could go for online. When people are commenting on your posts, you want to walk into their door, which is the DMs and have a conversation with them. What's going on? How did you find out about the podcast? Or how did you find out about me and have a real conversation? And then you also get a pulse of for me, what are my listeners like? You know, what are my Instagram followers like?

• 30:32Speaker 00

  And it's so important. I bet Hala that it makes them feel special. You know, in that case, online, imagine them saying, oh, wow. Actually, yeah, out of all the thousands of comments Hala gets, Hala responded to this one and said, hi, and DM'd me or said, thanks for being a listener. That means a lot. I remember Hala, going back to the real world as we're online, offline, but the same principle. I took my wife to a concert. I'll never forget the entertainer. He's a Christian gospel musician. He was said, thank you for flying here and seeing me. It just his thanks. I was humbled. So you know that like you said, holla going online, putting just one or two or three or four, five comments out of the thousands. People see that and they all feel connected to you.

• 31:13Hala Taha?

  Yeah, 100%. Okay, my last question for you really goes back to being a creator entrepreneur, having a personal brand. Now you've put out this website called Zone of Genius. Talk to us about what this website is for and then also how can we become a thought leader in our niche? How do we hone in our zone of genius?

• 31:37Speaker 00

  A friend of mine, his name is Joel. He was playing bass guitar, leading a choir and singing at the same time. And he's a gentleman who's been academically, you know, difficult in school and things of this nature. It was a little rough for him. But when I saw him holla, I was like, this guy is in his zone of genius. True story. Right there in the spot, pulled up my phone, bought the domain name and I held it for about half a year or so. And when I sold one or two of the things that I assets, you know, publications I had, I built zone of genius because that to me is the epicenter of entrepreneurship. What's your passion? What do you love? What excites you? And if you can add on to it, what you do freaking so well, that I think we have earned the right to be in our zone of genius. So that's

• 32:21Speaker 00

  why I started it at zoneofgenius.com. Thanks for asking. And really to encourage entrepreneurs, thrive, build your businesses. And if you can do it within your zone of genius, even better.

• 32:31Hala Taha?

  So Ramon, I end my show with two questions that I ask all of my guests. The first one, and you can answer however you want. It doesn't have to be about anything we talked about today. Okay. What is one actionable thing our young and profiteers can do today to become more profitable tomorrow?

• 32:46Speaker 00

  Build real relationships. Pick up your phone and text even better voice message via WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger. I do this. The people in your life that maybe you haven't said, thank you. Pick up the phone. Hey, listen, Jerry, I just wanted to say six months ago, you invited me to speak at your event. Eight months ago, we did this together. Yesterday, you sent me a box of chocolate. Thank you. So that's the one actionable thing. Pick up the phone, leave a voice message ideally to a person. That's what I suggest people do.

• 33:12Hala Taha?

  I need to get better at that. The last question is, what is your secret to profiting in life? This can go beyond financial.

• 33:22Speaker 00

  I'm risk tolerant. I don't fear failure. That's probably the better way to say I don't fear failure. I failed many times. I've messed up many times. I could be a better father, be a better husband, be a better entrepreneur, but I don't take myself too seriously, although I take my work seriously, if that makes sense. That's probably the best thing I do to be more profitable, be a better young entrepreneur is really not taking myself too seriously, being risk tolerant, or not being afraid to take risks.

• 33:49Hala Taha?

  I want to talk about that a little bit more because I think this fear of failure really hurts a lot of entrepreneurs because they end up not going after what they want. So what happens when you fail? How do you approach failure? And how do you get into that mindset of not being afraid of said failure?

• 34:08Speaker 00

  I'll give an example of a few years ago, many people know the computer company Dell Computer. Michael Dell was on stage at CES, where you've probably been before, you know, thousands and thousands of people, one of the biggest trade shows in the world. He was finishing his speech, whatever he was doing. I walked up. I didn't know the bloggers and influencers were in the back waiting for him. I was very new to this game many years ago. Hala, you can imagine Ramon stood up in the main CES auditorium. "Hey, Mr. Dell, I have a question for you." He looked down and walked away, not being rude, that was meaning that was the appropriate time. So that's an example of what I'm trying to express. I took my shot. It was the wrong timing. I didn't know it. I was embarrassed. But now, years later, Ramon Ray has been on

• 34:52Speaker 00

  stage and hosted events with these brands, works with the best brands and people in the world, as you know. What I'm trying to get at is that when things fail, I need you to think about when you take a risk, what's the worst that can happen? Now, if it's your life, your family, your wife, your husband, anything that's dramatic like that, whatever it is for you, for Hala, for Ramon, but if the worst that can happen is, Hala's producer says, "Thanks, not a fit." The worst that can happen is Starbucks says, "No, we don't use these kind of cookies." The worst that can happen is the client says, "No, you don't have enough experience to mow my lawn." That's the worst? That's not too bad. Keep doing it, learn from it, refine it, and do it again, and never stop taking reasonable risk. And even reasonable

• 35:35Speaker 00

  is contextual, because I've taken big, embarrassing risks many times in my life, but it's helped me be where I am today.

• 35:41Hala Taha?

  Such great advice. Ramon, thank you so much for joining us on Young and Profiting Podcast. I love the conversation.

• 35:47Speaker 00

  Thank you, Hala.

• 35:52Hala Taha?

  Big thanks to Bitdefender for sponsoring this episode and for helping to keep small businesses safe, protect your team, your data, and your business from scams, ransomware, and phishing. Remember, you can get 30% off at bitdefender.com/profiting. That's 30% off at bitdefender.com/profiting to protect yourself from everything that we spoke about today. And speaking about our conversation, huge shout out to Ramon Ray for all the insights that he shared. Remember, guys, one successful attack could destroy years of your hard work in just seconds. In today's digital world, cybersecurity is not optional. It's survival. And failing to act could mean exposing our data, our customers' trust, and even our entire livelihood. The question isn't whether you'll be targeted, it's if you're going to be ready when it

• 36:37Hala Taha?

  happens. The smartest move is to prepare now before it's too late. If you listened, learned, and profited from this episode of Young and Profiting, please share it with another entrepreneur who needs to hear this. And if you enjoyed this episode, drop us a five-star review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Castbox, or wherever you listen to the show. Nothing helps us reach more people than a good review from you. You can also catch the full video conversation on YouTube. As always, just search Young and Profiting. And if you want to connect with me, you can find me on Instagram at @yapwithhala or LinkedIn at @halaTaha. Until next time, this is your host, Hala Taha, aka The Podcast Princess, signing off.