Your persistence and patience has saved a lot of un-necessary shuffling of equipment, IT staff time and unrealized (future) gains of payroll staff time. It’s my opinion that companies which were able to survive the recent economic issues and flourish, can attribute much of their survival to excellent customer service like yours.
Mark Cameron - Network Administrator - Foothill Packing
Blog
Why Hackers Target Small Businesses
Posted Jun 13, 2017
As cybercrime around the world continues to dominate the news, it becomes increasingly necessary for business owners to evaluate their own data security measures. Although newsworthy cyberattacks tend to focus on big corporations or large-scale attacks, small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are not immune from malicious attacks. In fact, SMBs are frequently targeted by hackers as easy prey. Consider the following reasons why your SMB may be at risk.
Downplaying the Risk -SMBs- often under the false assumption that their company size alone makes them safe from attack—tend not to invest in data security measures. A study by Ponemon Institute found that 58 percent of SMB managers do not consider data breaches in company risk assessments. Moreover, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 65 percent of SMBs have no formal cybersecurity policy in place. This lack of awareness and preparation make SMBs low-hanging fruit for small-scale individual hackers and sophisticated cybercrime rings alike.
Easy Access -SMBs- with basic security measures in place may not realize their vulnerability. A recent FireEye and Mandiant study found that 96 percent of hackers bypassed multiple layers of several SMB's basic security protocols in a real-world scenario, suggesting businesses’ overwhelming reliance on outdated solutions and a false sense of security. Anti-malware software companies have the arduous task of keeping up with the latest advancements in hacking tactics, which, in turn, requires businesses to continually update and patch the software that they rely on for protection. Without dedicated IT professionals on staff or only having one IT guru responsible for a breadth of duties, these updates can slip, opening the door for hackers to attack.
Big Payoffs - Hackers have the power to leverage your company’s stolen information for payment, whether they sell your files to a third-party or hold them for ransom. The cost of a cyberattack or data breach can be astronomical, costing SMBs an average of $217 per stolen record, according to the same Ponemon Institute study. Moreover, according to the U.N. study, of those attacks reported to law enforcement, only 10 percent of SMB cybercrimes result in a conviction. Therefore, hackers are faced with a small risk / big reward scenario that entices more cybercriminals to approach cybercrime as a profession rather than a hobby.
Hackers are thinking of ways to breach your systems all day every day. How much time are you dedicating to securing your business data? Contact us today to learn how to combat cyberattacks by taking strategic steps to protect your business data.
