Why Should Small Businesses Be Equipped With Cyber Security Training?
Should cyber security be a priority for small businesses? It’s a common misunderstanding that cyber criminals only attack the large corporate organisations. Where this might be the case when the new threat emerged many years ago, it is absolutely no longer the case. Today every single business is at risk from a cyber- attack, and it is time for small businesses to be equipped with cyber security.
The average cost of a cyberattack is £3,230, according to ‘The Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sports’. While this might be nothing else than a small irritation, if even noticed to a FTSE-100, it will definitely hurt many small businesses.
In fact, an attack like this, would for almost a quarter of small businesses mean that they would be incapable of surviving the attack and the financial loss it brings.
That’s the equivalent of 1.3 Million SMEs in the UK!
As that wouldn’t be enough, for another 16% a loss in this scale would mean they would have to lay of staff members.
That’s the equivalent of another Million SMEs.
Therefore, Cyber Security is no longer an issue and threat only for the big organisations. Cyber Security should be at the top of the list for any organisation, big as small, as they plan their ongoing operations.
We see that many of the businesses that have already experienced an attack and fallen victim to it, has been through painstaking efforts to not only restore their systems, but also recovering their data and the financial loss. A loss that often brings them to a state where they can’t sustain their normal level of efficiency and operations. In the worst cases, they will be forced to close.
Why do cyber-attacks keep happening?
How many attacks do you think is caused by human error?
90%!
That’s how many % of cyber-attacks that are caused by human error, according to the Data Breach Investigations Report. Human error which has been initiated by a single user, on a single device. Thereafter manifested throughout systems to affect the business.
This fact, that businesses are painfully aware of, means that the threat will always be just 1 click away. To combat this, a safe working environment needs to be created, and that starts with awareness.
What cyber threats should small businesses look out for?
Last year the Government asked everyone who could work from home, to do so. It made it clearer than ever for all of us, just how much we now depend on digital technology. Having a device at hand wherever you are bringing an immense sense of power, flexibility and opportunity. Unfortunately, these benefits bring simultaneous risks.
No matter how your business operates at the moment, the digital way of working is there.
That makes cyber security more important than ever.
What else the lockdown has showed businesses, is that systems and devices previously used in the office, is no longer fit for purpose.
Ageing hardware, vulnerable operating systems and general unsecured systems are now being used remotely. Known as ‘endpoints’ these devices with very little to no protection, is used to carry out day to day activities. But where they used to be connected to the office direct internet line, they are now connected to free hotspots and home internet connections.
Businesses with employees working remotely are reliant on the staff to keep their machines updated at all times (also known as ‘Patching’).
But with employees working from home, they have no way of knowing if they truly are.
We finally have light in the end of the ‘lockdown tunnel’, and businesses are starting to plan and prepare for their return to the office, if they even are coming back.
While many businesses found themselves forced to relax their security procedures, when employees suddenly had to work from home to stay safe, there is no longer a way around it.
Users and their Endpoints need to be armed with protection and awareness. It is the only way that businesses can avoid these human errors that cause the majority of successful cyber-attacks.
What cyber security should small businesses focus on?
To secure Endpoints, endpoint protection must be deployed on all devices that employees use to access work files on. This will allow for remote updating of all devices -and give the business full control to protect its property.
Alongside that, users must continuously be educated on cyber security and how to navigate within it, as they perform their roles.
Cyber Criminals are smarter and more creative than ever, which cause these human errors to happen. Attacks, such as Phishing emails are not necessarily easy to spot and therefore users must receive training to know what to look out for.
Are you not sure on what phishing is ? Read our full explainer blog here.
While ‘normality’ is still too far away, and the return to the office won’t happen overnight. Some may have found that the mixture of working remote and in the office makes their organisation more productive.
The overall uncertainty of how we will work in the nearest future is still unknown.
The only thing we do know, is that cyber-attacks is on the increase more so now than ever. For that reason businesses needs to take their precautions and prepare and protect their employees and businesses so they won’t be the next victim for the more and more common attacks.
Are you prepared?
For many businesses, cyber security can be a jungle of its own. We at Redsquid are here to help you through this transition to make sure that you are prepared and equipped to be working safely.
If you want to talk your business cyber security over, let’s set up a call with our cyber experts to do a risk assessment on your business. Just fill out the form below and we will be in touch.
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