SMBs Underestimate Data Breach Costs, Threat | PYMNTS.com

$149,000: the average cost of a data breach for a small-to-medium sized business, according to AppRiver. Even more troubling, however, is the cloud security company’s finding that most SMBs estimate the cost of a data breach to be just $10,000. The firm’s Q3 Cyberthreat Index for Business Survey concluded that small businesses severely underestimate the financial damage a cyberattack can impose on their company: only 19 percent of survey respondents acknowledged that costs could surpass $100,000.

 

The U.S. Small Business Administration estimates that there were almost 42,000 online security incidents around the globe last year – and about 43 percent of those cases targeted small businesses. In this context, the House Financial Services Committee’s Task Force on Artificial Intelligence met earlier this month to discuss the rising threat of small business cyberattacks, the role of technology in combatting it, and the potential for regulation to address security risks.

 

“Cybercriminals continue to be creative in their attacks, turning their attention to industries such as manufacturing to retail, and using cloud technology and software like common mobile apps to their advantage,” he said in a statement last week. “All these threats mean that businesses need to cast a wide ned and use a variety of tools to keep their businesses and their customers safe.”

 

Stronger passwords. Paying closer attention to suspicious emails. Using public wi-fi with caution and safeguarding mobile apps. They’re just a few basic rules of thumb for small business owners to help mitigate the risk of a cyberattack, according to Matrix Integration; however, as president Nathan Stallings warns, as cyberattacks become more sophisticated, so much small businesses’ mitigation tactics.

 

It’s National Cyber Security Awareness Month, and industry leaders are zeroing in on some of the most vulnerable targets of cyber scams: small businesses.