When intelligence services chiefs urge greater preparedness by businesses for UK cyberthreats, it’s probably time to take notice and sort out some protection.
Richard Horne, the new head of GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre says the prospect of sophisticated hacking attacks is “widely underestimated” by both the public and private sectors. The growth of artificial intelligence is swelling the volume of impact of threats, while the gulf between the exposure faced and the defences in place has apparently never been wider.
Over the last year, the UK’s cyber security sector has shown significant resilience and growth, with a 13% increase in sector revenue, creating 2,700 new jobs, and demonstrating robust economic performance despite global challenges.
Protecting against the most common cyber threats to SMEs – ransomware and hacking – suggests two immediate routes: software and insurance. Both are in danger of being neglected by smaller businesses because of the perceived cost, amid so many other rising expenses.
Managed IT services group Intelliworx says SMEs can implement several relatively simple and cost-effective measures to enhance their cybersecurity profile. Tighter email security, applying multi-factor authentication, and conducting regular data backups can help significantly in protecting sensitive data. Educating employees about potential threats and best practices is also critical and can substantially reduce the likelihood of successful cyberattacks. Training programmes in this area help to build awareness and ensure that employees stick to established protocols, building a stronger line of defence against potential threats.
Of course, cyber security isn’t only an IT issue, it’s fundamental to a sustainable business. SMEs need to protect not only their operations but also the sensitive data entrusted to them by clients and partners.
Recent research by insurer Markel reveals that nearly 1 in 4 SMEs are concerned about the security of home working environments, which have become the norm for at least two days a week in many companies. A survey of 500 smaller business owners showed that 23% feared higher exposure from home working, with 69% of respondents failing to have a company-wide cyber security policy in place to address a potential attack.
Interestingly, the wider insurance industry says cyber cover rates continue to fall: brokers can’t seem to agree whether this is a result of better IT system protection or lower demand from cash strapped smaller businesses. In any event, it seems that competition and new providers in a growing area have driven down prices for both new policies and renewals. SMEs should bite the bullet and consider cyber cover as an investment. Reluctance should not be based on a belief that small businesses are less interesting to hackers – the reverse is true, since they’re usually easier to breach.
Business owners in a position to invest and explore the potential for cost-effective digitisation must consider ransomware and related protective software very seriously. Those handling third-party data risk serious reputational damage, with customers happy to move to companies which they believe are better able to handle their information in a safe and secure way.
Written by Oliver Southwell, Turnaround Executive at Buchler Phillips, a UK based independent boutique firm with an impeccable Mayfair heritage, specialising in corporate recovery, turnaround, restructuring and insolvency.