Hey Small Business, You Are A Cyber-Target...
There is a common misconception out there. Many small to midsized businesses think that they are “too small” to be a target for cybercrimes. We wish that were the case, but unfortunately, cybercriminals do not care who you are or the size of your business. If there is data to be stolen, you are a target. When you take a closer look at the data, a small or midsize business is more likely—not less—to face a cyber-attack compared with large enterprises.
Small and midsize businesses face the same cyber threats as large enterprises but have a fraction of the budget to deal with them. The defenses most SMBs feel are adequate are, in fact, ill-equipped to combat today’s advanced attacks. Firewalls, next-generation firewalls, intrusion prevention systems (IPS), AV software, and gateways remain important security defenses, although today, they are just not enough to effectively stop targeted attacks.
A data breach can put you out of business.
Are you aware that 60% of small firms go out of business within six months of a data breach? Cyberattacks are growing more sophisticated and, more often than not, target small and midsize businesses (SMBs). One unlucky click—a malicious email attachment, a link to a legitimate but compromised website—could result in a costly data breach that drains your bank account and customer trust.
Assume you are a Target.
In 2020 alone, 47% of SMB experienced a Cyberattack. Out of those SMBs, 44% experienced more than one attack. In addition to the frequency of attacks, the cost of said attacks is also increasing. The average cost used to be close to $34,000 and now is just under $200,000 per incident. By assuming that you are in cyber attackers’ crosshairs, you can better prepare yourself against the inevitable attack.
Identify your most valuable assets.
You would never hire bodyguards and forget to tell them whom they are supposed to be protecting. In the same way, defending your systems starts with identifying your most valuable assets. Identify potentially valuable data and how it could be vulnerable to well-funded, highly organized attackers. That crucial step will help spot the weakest links in your security system and highlight what you need to do to protect your assets.
Deploy a security platform capable of identifying and blocking today’s attacks
A widening gap between threat actors’ offensive abilities and badly outdated defenses has left organizations more vulnerable than ever. Today’s attacks exploit previously unknown, zero-day vulnerabilities, efficiently bypassing signature- and reputation-based defenses. And file-based sandboxes, touted by legacy vendors as their fresh approach to security, are constrained by many of the same flaws as traditional security products. SMBs must take a radically different approach. They need a security platform to detect and block known and unknown threats with real-time, collective security.
Wake-up Call
The first critical step for small to midsize businesses is to realize that they are a target of cybercriminals. The data you store on customers, clients, patients, and employees is very valuable to criminals. Being small does not make you less of a target; it makes you more of a target. To learn more about how to prevent a costly breach to your business, contact your Pendello Solutions team today.
At Pendello Solutions, we turn technology hurdles into powerful assets. Our technology solutions fuel growth, productivity, and efficiency, through continuous innovation and strategic solutions, empowering your business beyond the imaginable. Contact us today to discover the Pendello Method.