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“Cyber security is arguably the most challenging issue facing companies today; according to the new governmental report on cyber security breaches survey 2017, businesses are increasingly looking to websites, social media pages and the use of cloud services, meaning that companies need to ensure these platforms and services are kept secure and managed effectively. Although the majority of businesses have spent money on cybersecurity, it’s notable that a significant proportion of businesses do not have adequate basic cyber security protection: only 37% have segregated wireless networks or any rules around encryption of personal data. With nearly half of all businesses experiencing a breach in the past twelve months, access to personal data and a wireless router hack could cost a company huge financial and reputational damage.

“It’s encouraging to see companies taking cyber security more seriously than they were last year, but it’s also concerning to see SMEs’ and micro firms’ lack of awareness of cyber security initiatives and standards in the report. While larger organisations view cyber security nowadays as an essential, for smaller companies, many simply don’t feel they are at risk from a cyber attack. SMEs and micro firms are particularly vulnerable, as they a) are often part of a supply chain and provide a gateway in to bigger organisations and b) tend not to have the same level of security as their larger counterparts.

“Cybercrime is not an issue that is going to disappear anytime soon; we’ve seen it disrupt businesses, healthcare systems and even elections. Therefore, building layered security defences spanning encryption, firewalls, web filtering and ongoing threat monitoring is paramount to ensuring a company has a robust cyber defence strategy to counteract threat actors. In a war between business security and hackers, don’t bring a sword to a gunfight!”