Cybersecurity Ranks as the #1 Organisational Risk for 2019
The European Confederation of Institutes of Internal Auditing’s (ECIIA) Risk in Focus 2019 report found that organisations have identified cybersecurity as their greatest risk. The report claims that 66% of organisations ranked cyber-security as one of their top five risks and 15% identified it as their single highest concern.
So why is it that on a wider scale, according to the 2018 Cyber-Security Breaches Survey, only 9% of businesses and 4% of charities have a specific cybersecurity policy in place?
Some of the biggest victims in 2018 included T-Mobile, which affected 2 million customers, Ticketfly, which affected 27 million and Marriott Starwood Hotels, which affected 500 million guests and was one of the biggest cyber-incidents in history.
While these particular breaches affected massive organisations with huge customer databases, it is worth noting that in the past year, 42% of all cyber-attacks were against small businesses.
To help you out, consider these key points from the ECIIA report to identify where your organisation can improve:
- Cloud Security – While using the cloud provides a wealth of benefits such as reducing software costs, improving remote working capabilities and easing collaboration efforts, this mass of digital data housed in one central location is a primary target for cyber-attacks. In 2017, Microsoft reported that the number of attacks on customers’ cloud-based accounts had quadrupled. The cause of this was identified as poor password management and phishing scams. To find out more about phishing scams see here and here! If your organisation is using the cloud, it’s of high importance that you establish a strong security framework.
- Secure your supply chain and partners – You shouldn’t just be concerned about hackers attacking your organisation directly. The ECIIA report has revealed that many cyber-criminals use a company’s key partners and suppliers to instigate a data breach. It’s been found that nearly 60% of organisations experienced an attack caused by a supplier in 2017.
For more information on cyber insurance get in touch with one of our advisors by requesting a quote through our website or calling us directly on 0330 1240730!
