The rising costs of malicious software attacks and staff-related breaches highlights the need for companies to take action, Digital Economy Minister Ed Vaizey said at the recent Infosecurity Europe event.
He was speaking at the launch of “The Information Security Breaches Survey 2015”, which has been prepared for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
Available at http://pwc.to/1K9aKUl, the report points out that, as the number of security breaches has increased, the scale and cost has nearly doubled.
“Nearly nine out of 10 large organisations surveyed now suffer some form of security breach,” PwC said, “suggesting that these incidents are now a near certainty. Businesses should ensure they are managing the risk accordingly.”
For small and medium-sized businesses, the cost of the most severe breaches can now reach as high as £310,800, up from £115,000 in 2014. The survey showed that 75% of large businesses and 30% of smaller ones suffered staff-related breaches, although attacks from outsiders have become a greater threat for businesses of all sizes.
Mr Vaizey said: “The UK’s digital economy is strong and growing, which is why British businesses remain an attractive target for cyber-attack and the cost is rising dramatically. I would urge businesses of all sizes to make use of the help and guidance available from government and take up the Cyber Essentials Scheme.”
Details of this new government-backed and industry-supported scheme can be found at http://bit.ly/1p8RBWZ.
If you would like further information on Cyber Risks including how you can insure against them, then please do not hesitate to contact the dot2dot team on 01204 570390.
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