Cyber Security is Like Insurance: Here's Why You Need?It

Cybercrime is one of the biggest threats facing modern society. Recent studies show the threat has increased fourfold since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Shockingly, 60% of small businesses don’t have a cybersecurity policy and are unprepared to deal with cyber threats.

To understand the apathy toward cybersecurity, you only have to look at the insurance industry. Most business owners appreciate the importance of business insurance, but a recent survey shows only 28% of respondents maintain a business policy. This leaves many enterprises exposed to devastating risks.

Why the apathy? Most small or medium-sized business owners feel threats such as fire, catastrophic storm damage, or bankruptcy won’t ever affect them, and they think insurance is only for big businesses. Many feel the same way about cybersecurity.

As cybersecurity risks increase, however, your small business is even more exposed without protective measures in place. Learn about the dangers your business faces without proper cybersecurity practices and how to streamline your IT security strategy.

Demystifying Cybersecurity

While cybersecurity remains a major topic across all industries, many business owners don’t prioritize it due to lack of information. As with insurance, business owners may agree there are multiple threats facing their enterprises, but actually buying insurance is low on their list.

To understand why cybersecurity is so critical, consider that most businesses operate online. This means they generate a lot of data which they also store online. If a website fails for any reason, it means your business is virtually closed to millions of potential clients.

Cybersecurity protects your computer systems against theft or damage. In addition, cybersecurity solutions protect hardware, software, and your electronic data while also reducing the risk of disruption (downtime).

There are myriad threats out there, and you need to understand them to appreciate the importance of innovative cybersecurity solutions . Here are some of these cyber threats:

Phishing

The biggest cyber threat to your business comes from phishing. This is a process whereby hackers send email messages to someone in your company. If the employee clicks on a link, they basically open a malicious site which can access and share your sensitive company data from credit card information to passwords. Email remains the top entry point for malware.

Ransomware

Your computer systems or online platforms are essential to your business. Unfortunately, ransomware attacks are common. It’s a malicious technique by which a cybercriminal takes over and demands a monetary fee. Paying the ransom, however, doesn’t guarantee protection from future attacks.

Malware

Malware is a malicious form of software designed to harm your computer system or steal data, as in a ransomware attack. The disruption or data breach can handicap your operations with devastating effects.

Attack on Personal?Devices

The COVID-19 pandemic forced millions of employees into remote work without security precautions. Many used their personal devices to access corporate systems, and this has become a major cybersecurity threat.

Cyber threats evolve as fast as hackers refine their techniques. From crypto jacking, cloud computing attacks, credentials theft, social engineering attacks, IoT attacks, SMS-based Phishing (Smishing), PDF scams to accidental sharing, there’s no dearth of cybersecurity threats.

The Threat is Real: Cybersecurity Risks on the?Rise

For many business owners, cybersecurity issues are not an urgent issue despite evidence to the contrary. In a business environment with a slow global economy and stiffer-than-ever competition, the focus for many businesses is simply survival.

However, all the resources and efforts you invest in your enterprise might go to waste with a single cyber attack. In 2020, global losses from cyber crime rose by 50% from 2018 to exceed $1 trillion in 2020. The same study shows 75% of businesses surveyed reported a cyber attack in 2019.

If you haven’t considered the potential impact of cybercrime on your business, look at these possible debilitating effects:

Financial Losses

A cyber attack can bring down your operations, which affects delivery of services. If you’re in the supplies business, this means your clients won’t receive orders on time. Plus, there’s a significant risk of losing such clients which would affect your company’s bottom line.

In the event of a cyber attack, you’ll have to act quickly and spend money to respond to the threat. For instance, if a hacker takes control of your social media accounts, you’ll need an IT security expert immediately. Incidence response costs eat into your profits, but if you have cybersecurity infrastructure in place, you reduce such risks and save money in the long run.

System Downtime

In today’s digital world, online availability has become a necessity for every business. From websites to social media and email, you have a variety of digital platforms to reach your target audience. Cyber attacks can take your business offline for a long time and set you back for years.

If you have an online store, for instance, this would mean customers can’t complete transactions. Worse still, the risk of data breach increases significantly when the systems are down. You have no way to set up security protocols to prevent loss of company or clients’ data when your systems are down.

System downtime can bring even the largest organizations to their knees. This is one reason to install the best security software you can. Working with an experienced IT security company also helps reduce the risk of downtime.

Damage to Your Brand’s Reputation

Word spreads fast on social media, and while this is a good thing for your marketing campaigns, it can also ruin your company. What if a hacker accesses your database and shares clients’ personal data online? Customer complaints and warnings will go viral. This is just one example of how a weak or non-existent cybersecurity strategy can damage your company’s reputation.

Building a brand image is one of the toughest tasks for a business owner. You invest a lot of money, time, and effort and you have to nurture your campaigns consistently. A single attack incident can undo all this work in seconds.

The truth is, when a hacker takes control of your website or other online platforms, they work quickly to let the world know. Without a cybersecurity strategy, such attacks expose your business to further debilitating consequences. Many small businesses have suffered due to damaged reputation arising from cyber crime.

When your existing clients learn about such incidences, there’s a risk of customer attrition. Your team might also find it harder to attract new clients. On top of expenses incurred to undo the direct damage, you’ll spend even more to repair your weakened brand and return marketing campaigns to previous conversion rates. For these reasons and more, you don’t want to leave your business exposed.

Non-compliance Penalties

Over the last few years, online privacy has become a major topic of debate. Governments, human rights organizations, and consumer bodies have intensified the calls for data protection in the backdrop of worsening data breaches.

This has resulted in some tough compliance regulations in data use. If your business doesn’t invest in the best cybersecurity solutions, you might end up with legal lawsuits or hefty penalties. Some cybersecurity regulations and laws include CISA (cybersecurity information sharing), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) data security guidelines, and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

Most industries have specific data security regulations which come with legal consequences in cases of non-compliance. When a cyber attack occurs, investigators will check whether the best cybersecurity protocols are in place to protect against such attacks.

Why You Need Cybersecurity for Your?Business

At first glance, investing in insurance looks like an unnecessary expense. You might think “it” will never happen to me. And how do you know your business will suffer any damages from a particular threat? Many business owners use this logic to under-insure or avoid insurance altogether. This can have crushing consequences in case of fire, floods, theft, or other disruption.

The same applies to investment in the latest cybersecurity solutions. These security precautions not only protect your business but the entire business structure. From investors and suppliers to your clients, the cybersecurity technology you install keeps everyone safe.

Here’s a summary of the benefits of cutting-edge cybersecurity solutions for your business:

Protect against the Biggest Threat Facing Your?Business

Most business owners put their blood and sweat into the success of their ventures. Unfortunately, many of these small businesses and startups collapse within a few years of their launch.

If you have cushioned your business against common problems such as cash flow and management issues, there’s every reason to protect yourself against even bigger threats. Cyber attacks are the biggest threat facing your business right now, and that’s a good reason to invest in the best protection.

Avoid Financial Losses

Consider this scenario: you have an online fashion store, and one day during the busy holiday season everything disappears. You can’t log into your website, customers can’t complete orders, and your store is offline. What do you do? This is just one example of a cyber attack and how it can destroy your hoped-for profits and even your entire business.

Your IT security company has the expertise and technology to predict threats and prevent damage, and they also get your site back quickly in the event of an attack. Fast recovery means big savings for your company.

Avoid Regulatory Costs

Failure to protect your clients’ data can lead to costly fines from regulatory authorities. You might also face lawsuits from individual clients because of loss of personal data. Your IT security expert helps you implement the best cybersecurity features on your systems to prevent such a situation.

Prevent Reputational Costs

The modern consumer is more conscious about online interactions. They insist on working with brands which protect their data. When you build your website and other systems, consider the latest data security features to avoid damaging your brand’s image.

Losing loyal customers has a tremendous impact on your revenue. Data breaches and other forms of cyber attacks can damage your brand’s reputation with long-term effects. No customer wants to leave their personal data with a company that’s prone to cyber-attacks.

Boosting Productivity

Most businesses today have digitized systems used by employees, customers, and vendors. If the systems fail because of hacking or malware, you lose a lot of time. Employees can’t complete orders or reach your clients, and it affects productivity across departments. With the right cybersecurity measures, however, you can prevent loss of work hours and improve engagement with clients.

From Equifax, eBay to Yahoo, it’s easy to see how even the biggest brands have suffered because of cyber attacks. This is reason enough to deploy the best cybersecurity protocols to protect your business. With innovative IT security solutions, you can now protect your investment, employees, clients, vendors, and everyone involved in your business.

Looking for the best IT security solutions for your business? Check out https://www.simplitfy.com . Simplitfy is an MPS specializing in IT and cyber security solutions for small and medium businesses.?

Erick Solms is the Founder of Simplitfy in West Palm Beach, Florida. Simplitfy provides a myriad of professional IT Services for small and medium sized businesses. To contact him personally or to inquire about information technology services, please email [email protected] or visit www.simplitfy.com