When running a business, running into a problem is inevitable. Financial issues, supply issues, maintenance issues, et cetera, et cetera. No matter how efficient you are, something will always come up. The best solution for this is simple, account for it. A good contingency plan can be a lifesaver. It might be a separate account from which you can draw money, it might be storage of backup supplies and such, it might be as simple as having insurance. Accounting for potential issues is one of the highest responsibilities of a business owner. And yet, despite this, failing to account for cyberattacks remains a key problem for small businesses.

Though, ‘Cyberattacks are increasingly targeting small and medium-sized organizations [...] 43% of cyberattacks are aimed at SMBs, [...] only 14% are prepared to defend themselves. Cybercriminals target small businesses because they are easier targets to penetrate.’ (Alliance Cybersecurity) Evidently, despite the potential of suffering a cyberattack, most small businesses remain insecure by not having cybersecurity. As such, they are losing money, losing data, losing clients and losing reputation. The issues of this however only increase when we consider the climate in which small business owners think about cyberattacks. Nivedita James Palatty writes that ‘47% of businesses that have less than 50 employees don’t allocate any funds towards cybersecurity. While 51% of small businesses don’t utilize any IT security measures.’ (Palatty, 2023) And additionally ‘36% of small businesses have no concern whatsoever about cyberattacks. Another 59% of small business owners who have no cybersecurity believe that their company is too minuscule to be targeted.’ (Palatty, 2023)

So what’s the solution here? Account for the accountable. The risks are simply too high, to not invest in some form of cybersecurity for your business. In the best-case scenario, you’re never cyberattacked, but should the worst come to fruition, you will only have yourself to blame in the face of a cyberattack.

- Written By; Ryan Sadler, June 1st 2024

Bibliography:

Alliance Cybersecurity, Cybersecurity for Small to Medium-Size Businesses, online report, 12 October 2023, <https://www.nacha.org/system/files/2023-10/Alliance%20Cybersecurity%20TTX%20Leaders%20Guide_FINAL.pdf> [accessed 1 June 2024]

Nivedita James Palatty, (2023), ‘51 Small Business Cyber Attack Statistics 2024 (And What You Can Do About Them)’, Security Audit, 22 December, <https://www.getastra.com/blog/security-audit/small-business-cyber-attack-statistics/> [accessed 1 June 2024]