Crimes against any business can be an issue and one of the biggest threats to businesses at the moment is that of cyber attacks. Bharat Bhise HNA is an expert in this field and he has just about seen it all when it comes to the types of nefarious activities which people take part in online, and the consequences which they have. It was Bharat in fact who inspired me to up the levels of cyber security which my own business had, and he has helped many more businesses to do the same. If you are in any doubt as to whether or not this is important, here is exactly why it is.
The Cost of a Breach
If you are attacked by a cyber criminal then the cost of such a breach is going to run into the thousands, and that includes small businesses. The financial damage is not just about the theft of money or information but also the added need for more improved security, the closing of backdoors or code which has been left in your system and the reparation of any hardware. No business can afford this, much less a smaller company.
Hacker Sophistication
When you are dealing with a petty criminal you can almost guarantee that they are pretty rudimentary in their actions, this is not the case with cyber-criminals. In fact the hackers which we are seeing today are incredibly sophisticated and they see high levels of security as a challenge more than anything else, if you have basic cyber security therefore, you can only imagine how easy it will be for them to breach it.
Reputation
As aforementioned the financial cost of a cyber attack is not just about fixing things afterwards, as some of that damage may be irreparable. One of the biggest impacts which it will have on your business is a loss in sales owing to a poor reputation. What do you think that you customers will do when they find out that a company who they thought they could trust with their personal information has been breached, and put this information at risk? The answer is that they are highly unlikely to wish to do business with that company again, and word will soon spread.
Regulations
Owing to the frequency of attacks the European Union have put a regulation in place called GDPR, which has requirements for businesses to lock down their cyber security. This was put together in an effort to better safeguard the information of customers and the personal details of both them and the staff in the business. Since this has been released it calls on all business owners to beef up their cyber security in order to protect all parties involved. Businesses who do not live up to their requirements can be fined by the governing body.
These threats are very real and there is no specific type of business which is most at risk, this is why cyber security is so important.
