In the modern business landscape, the spectre of cybersecurity breaches looms large, and when you factor in the formidable General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the urgency of safeguarding IT systems and data has never been more pronounced.
Staggeringly, as per government statistics from www.gov.uk, 39% of surveyed UK businesses have fallen victim to cyber attacks. What’s even more concerning is that one in five of these businesses reported facing attacks on a weekly basis.
Sam Allen, our Accounts Associate, recently delved into the prevalent challenges encountered by businesses in this featured article, within Business Cornwall magazine:
Cyber security breaches are one of the biggest threats facing organisations today. When you combine this with GDPR, the importance of protecting IT systems and data has never been higher.
Cyber security attacks can take on many forms, some common types include:
- Phishing – This is where an attacker sends a malicious email designed to trick you into disclosing sensitive information, such as bank details. As a general rule be suspicious of any email you are not expecting, an email that is creating urgency and any that sound too good to be true.
- Ransomware – This is where an attacker gains access to your IT system and locks you out. A ransom is then demanded in exchange for access to your own data. Ransomware can enter your IT system in various ways such as clicking on harmful links or attachments sent in emails or entering harmful websites.
- Unauthorised access– A weak password can take on many forms such as being too short, contain no special characters or being based on a birthday or easily predictable word. These can be easily broken by an experienced hacker.
It is important for organisations to have robust systems in place to combat cyber security threats, such as a secure messaging system to allow clients to send and receive documents securely and all employees should receive regular training to help identify and stop any potential threats.
Adequate cyber insurance cover would also be highly recommended, as would be advice from specialist cyber security consultants.
The National Cyber Security Centre has various information and advice on how to prevent these attacks and what to do if you fall victim to them. They also provide updates on known threats to be on the lookout for.
This article was published for Business Cornwall magazine, on 3 July 2023 (Page 26): https://issuu.com/businesscornwall/docs/bc_julaug23