Most Texas Business Owners Overlook This Common Office Vulnerability

When you think about cybersecurity threats, you probably picture phishing emails, malware, or weak passwords. But there’s another threat quietly sitting in plain sight: your office printer.

It sounds absurd, but hackers love printers—and most businesses in Texas aren’t doing nearly enough to secure them.

In a 2020 experiment by Cybernews, researchers hacked 56% of 50,000 printers they tested. That’s nearly 28,000 compromised devices—because organizations failed to treat their printers as potential threats.

 

Why Hackers Target Printers

Modern printers are not just printing devices. They’re connected computers—equipped with storage, connectivity, and access to your entire business network. Here’s why they’re so attractive to cybercriminals:

  • Printers store sensitive data: Every print, scan, or copy may leave a digital footprint. Many printers have internal hard drives filled with confidential documents like payroll files and contracts.
  • Default admin credentials: Most businesses never change the default passwords. Hackers know this and take advantage.
  • Printers are networked devices: Once compromised, a printer can serve as a doorway to your network, enabling malware installation or data theft.
  • Unencrypted print jobs: Without encryption, sensitive documents can be intercepted in transit.
  • Remote access and surveillance: Scan-to-email and document storage features can be hijacked by hackers to steal or monitor files remotely.
  • Outdated firmware: Security updates often go ignored, leaving devices vulnerable to known exploits.
  • Poor disposal practices: Discarded printers with residual data can be mined by cybercriminals, exposing legal and regulatory risks.

 

How to Protect Your Office Printers from Cyberattacks

Texas businesses—especially small and mid-sized organizations—must treat printers like any other endpoint in their security strategy. Here's how:

  1. Change Default Passwords - Immediately update all administrator credentials to strong, unique passwords.
  2. Update Firmware Regularly - Check your printer’s settings for firmware updates or have your IT provider handle it.
  3. Encrypt Print Jobs - Enable end-to-end encryption to prevent interception of documents during transmission.
  4. Control Who Can Print - Use access permissions and PIN codes for confidential print jobs. Implement guest restrictions.
  5. Clear Stored Data Frequently - Delete stored print jobs routinely. When replacing a printer, fully wipe or destroy the hard drive.
  6. Use a Firewall - Treat printers like computers—protect them with a network firewall to block unauthorized access.
  7. Monitor Printer Logs - Ensure your IT team is reviewing usage data for unusual activity or remote login attempts.

 

Don’t Let an Overlooked Device Compromise Your Entire Network

Many Texas businesses are investing in firewalls and antivirus tools while ignoring the networked printer sitting in the hallway. Hackers know that printers are often left unsecured—and they’re using that to their advantage.

If you’ve never assessed the security of your office printers, now is the time.

Start with a free Network Security Assessment. We’ll help you identify vulnerabilities, lock down overlooked endpoints, and ensure your printers aren’t a backdoor into your business.