Data and information are valuable. How many companies out there are vying to collect yours? Just about all of them, right? Some have you rattling off your life’s story in data points before you can create an account. You can hardly get a coffee without at least a phone number and email. So let’s say it again, data is valuable! We see it evidenced every day.
Why are we talking about data? Data is valuable to help you make informed decisions and gain competitive advantages but it can also be the very reason you find yourself in hot water. If you collect data you are also obligated to act as a responsible custodian of that data too- especially personal, financial and sensitive information. This does not just apply to medical information either.
Also, speaking of medical information! Medical professionals do not need to read this, of course. You guys understand HIPAA. You know HIPAA, right?
Look, the more data you have, the more your business stands to lose in a data breach. Just like the lyrics go, “mo’ money, mo’ problems”.
This data that you may posses that can result in lawsuits, hit your bank account and damage your brand.
Let’s look at guesstimate expenses stemming from a data breach for a small business using a tool from a Cyber Insurance Carrier. (source below)
Your Business was Hacked Scenario:
- You’ve had no breaches in the past but you don’t have top notch security in place
- You lost 100 individuals’ data
- Type of Data lost was personal and credit card info
- This did not make the news
😲
While the costs can vary based on the specific example, I think we can agree that these costs are very significant for a breach involving just 100 individual records. Cyber Criminals know this and are more than willing to go after small and medium sized businesses- especially if they can find a soft target.
If you think half a million is high, consider this stat from IBM’s 2023 report:
Organizations with fewer than 500 employees reported that the average impact of a data breach increased from USD 2.92 million to USD 3.31 million or 13.4%.
(A link to their findings is below)
Now that we’ve gone over the doom and gloom of storing data, let’s also point out some easy things you can do to protect your business and its data. You don’t need a complicated IT Team or Cyber Security Team to do these:
Prevent the Breach:
- Sign up for a VPN
- Set up a Firewall
- Enable Multi Factor Authentication
Detect the Breach:
- Intrusion Detection System (IDS)
Respond to the Breach:
- Create your incident response plan (even if you start with key contacts)
- Understand what your Insurance covers
This list is not all encompassing but it is meant to display some easy first steps in becoming more cyber-secure.
Thanks for joining me today. If you have any input or questions, keep it to yourself please reach out! I look forward to connecting.
Sources:
data breach increased from USD 2.92 million (a PDF version is available too)
Leave a Reply