Cases of unauthorized persons stealing or accessing sensitive small business data like intellectual property, employees’ personal information or even financial records have been rising.
What’s sad is that when a data breach occurs, companies take an average of 191 days to realize it has happened, according to a recent report highlighted by TekMonks, a global enterprise software development and IT services company.
This slow response to cyber-attacks is alarming. It puts small businesses in a precarious position and demonstrates a dire need for cyber-security awareness and preparedness in every business.
Slow Response to Cyber-Attacks Hurting Small Businesses
“If your firm isn’t top of cybersecurity, you never know when the next attack is coming and what they will steal,” writes TekMonks on its company blog.
In 2017, there was a total of 1,579 publicly disclosed data breaches, adds the software and IT services firm co-headquartered in Toronto, ON, Canada and Chicago, IL, USA, in a neat infographic the company created pointing out alarming cybersecurity facts.
Of the data breaches reported last year, 75% of them were caused by external sources.
A total of 1,946,181,599 records containing personal and other sensitive data were compromised, costing businesses an average of $3.62 million in damages, per TekMonks’ figures. The time cost for businesses was an average of 66 days to fully contain a data breach.
What are you doing to protect your small business from costly data breaches?
Alarming Facts, Data Breach Statistics, and Tips on Cybersecurity – Infographic
Ginni Rometty, president, chair and CEO of IBM, is quoted as saying cyber-crime is the greatest threat to every company in the world. She’s probably right considering that anyone connected to the internet, from top executives to junior employees, are vulnerable to cyber-attacks.
As a small business owner, you need to take steps to protect your business, including implementing secure communication methods, watching out for phishing emails and buying cyber liability insurance. Reports indicate 60 percent of small companies go out of business within six months of a cyber-attack.
Check out TekMonks’ insightful infographic below to learn more about other shocking cybersecurity facts that show why a data breach is such a big threat to your small business.
Image: Tekmonks