An article in Forbes discusses the risk of cyberattacks on businesses. Many companies are unprepared to prevent a cyberattack.
Yet many are still ill-prepared for the new age of cybercrime. Recently, PwC indicated less than half of companies surveyed are taking necessary steps to protect their business. This lack of action is not only leading to significant costs, but can result in immeasurable damage to corporate reputation.
Threats are not only from external forces but come from inside as well:
More than disgruntled employee sabotage, many internal threats stem from lack of corporate oversite – as employees are free to download rogue software, access corporate data on personal devices, and conduct business using smart phones. The surge of “Shadow IT” – leveraging various software-as-a-service platforms or cloud storage offerings like Dropbox in the corporate setting – is pushing the threat even further. Partners must also be included in any security equation as an extension of the business. The practice of openly sharing assets and logins can create dangerous holes in security of data. Add into the mix new regulations like HIPAA – and that nearly 60 percent of IT and business decision makers in the US are only moderately confident of their own compliance – it’s no wonder companies need to worry about multiple points of weakness across the IT infrastructure.
Unfortunately, many businesses lack the skill set needed to implement the required security safeguards:
If all of this sounds complicated – it is. Quite often, finding the in-house skills to properly implement required security measures is simply not an option. That’s why outsourcing has become such a popular approach. These third-parties can help you assess your risk across the board and segment your assets effectively
Businesses, especially small to midsize businesses (SMBs), need to take the necessary steps to protect themselves from cyberattacks. Too many SMBs are in denial that they can be a victim of cyberattacks. The 2012 Data Breach Investigations Study by Verizon shows that 71 percent of breaches occurred in businesses with fewer than 100 employees.
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