From the government to individuals and businesses, keeping data safe is currently one of the top priorities in the UK.

Over the past year and a half, we have all witnessed an acceleration in the digitalisation of our lives, this is particularly true in regard to our work. Due to the pandemic, many businesses had to navigate the drastic change from office to remote working. According to McAfee monitoring, there was a 22% increase in the number of connected home devices globally from the start of the pandemic to January 2021.

This situation has made businesses more vulnerable to cybercriminals who are exploiting staff security weaknesses to target the businesses they work for. According to the Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2021 report, this is due to the fact that organisational resources are being diverted to facilitate  home working, making securing digital environments more challenging.

Because cyberattacks concerning large corporations are the ones most likely to make it to the mainstream media, one can easily be deceived into thinking that this is an abstract concept only targeting these companies. This cannot be further from the truth.

Around 65,000 attempts to hack small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) occur in the UK every day, around 4,500 of which are successful. That equates to around 1.6 million of the 5.7 million SMBs in the UK per year.

The average cost of a cyber attack on a business is £8,460. This figure rises to £13,400 for medium and large businesses.

In the face of this "Cyber pandemic", the government is urging businesses and charities to take action to secure their organisations. Taking care of your data security can be daunting but it is paramount to take all the necessary steps to protect your organisation:

  • Technologically; the best place to start is with an audit to evaluate how vulnerable you are to cyberattacks. 
  • Financially; in case your business is a victim of an attack you need to ensure it doesn't threaten your activity and that you will have the resources to carry on.

At 2 Circles, we can guide you through your journey to making your business more secure. 

Contact us via 03456 200 200 or info@2circles.com and get you the peace of mind you deserve to focus on what really matters, your business.

Sources:

https://businessblog.o2.co.uk/2021/05/04/cyber-security-and-your-business-what-to-look-out-for-in-2021/

https://businessblog.o2.co.uk/2021/05/10/stay-on-top-of-these-four-cyber-threats-to-protect-your-business/

https://businessblog.o2.co.uk/2020/03/16/creating-confidence-in-cyber-security/

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/businesses-urged-to-act-as-two-in-five-uk-firms-experience-cyber-attacks-in-the-last-year

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/cyber-security-breaches-survey-2021

https://www.csoonline.com/article/3440069/uk-cybersecurity-statistics-you-need-to-know.html