Cybersecurity is not only for large enterprises; Small businesses are under attack and require a paradigm shift in 2022.

Due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a drastic increase in the amount of people working from home, and the volume of business being conducted online. Because of this, businesses are now facing a much higher risk of cyber-attack.

“Small and medium organizations are most likely to face cyber threat activity in the form of cybercrime that often has immediate financial or privacy implications. Cyber threat actors target Canadian businesses for their data about customers, partners and suppliers, financial information and payment systems, and proprietary information.” says the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security.

To put this in perspective, let’s dive into some statistics surrounding cyber crime in Canada:

• one-in-five small businesses have been affected by a cyber attack or data breach.
• 40% of small business owners are spending at least $100,000 to resolve a cyber attack.
• Over one-in-ten (16%) small businesses don’t have any cybersecurity measures.
• Three-in-ten (31%) small businesses will be operating in a hybrid work model, with employees working both remotely and, in the office, post pandemic.
• 58% of Canadian organizations subject to cyber attacks were targeted by phishing.
• 30% of all Canadian companies suffer up to 20 cyber attacks in a 12-month period.

The probability of falling victim to a cyber attack has increased during the pandemic, which can not only leave your company financially vulnerable, but also open it up to many more detrimental damages. “Cyber security incidents can also result in reputational damage, productivity loss, intellectual property theft, operational disruptions, and recovery expenses.”.  Ensuring you are taking the proper precautions, training staff, and utilizing security software is more important now than ever before.

According to the Small Business Cyber Security Survey conducted by the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), 21%) of small businesses have suffered a cyber-attack in the past, and of those whose business suffered a cyber-attack, 58% stated that it cost them less than $100k in losses, while 41% stated that it was more than that amount.

With such a significant percentage of small businesses being the target of cyber-crime, and many of them costing victims over $100k, developing the proper protocols to protect yourself is extremely important. That’s why we have come up with some important tips you can follow to keep yourself vigilant and protect you and your business from scammers. We encourage you to check out our article Keeping You Safe Against Scams and Other Fraudulent Activity to learn more.

Losses that result from cyber-attacks can be very costly. We urge you to take our advice into consideration so that you can build up a strong cybersecurity model for your business.

#smallbusiness #cybersecurity #smallbusinesscybersecurity #smallbusinessonlinefraud #smallbusinessfraud #scamprevention 

Sources:

Canadian Centre for Cyber Security. (2021, May 13). Baseline Cyber Security Controls for small and medium organizations. Canadian Centre for Cyber Security. Retrieved December 2021, from https://cyber.gc.ca/en/guidance/baseline-cyber-security-controls-small-and-medium-organizations.

Cyber risks: An increased threat during covid-19. Insurance Bureau of Canada. (n.d.). Retrieved December 2021, from http://www.ibc.ca/ns/business/risk-management/cyber-risk/an-increased-threat-during-covid-19. 

Pandurov, M. (2021, October 6). 14 Scary Canadian & Global Cyber Crime Statistics for 2021. Reviewlution. Retrieved December 2021, from https://reviewlution.ca/resources/cyber-crime-statistics/