SME’s beware – stats show 60% of small companies won’t survive a cyber attack

Scary stats about cyber security shouldn’t be ignored. 32% of UK businesses reported suffering an attack or breach between 2022-2023. Hackers work in the shadows, targeting our vulnerabilities and finding the chink in our armour. They’re clever, and they’re continuously finding new, sophisticated ways to draw us in and breach our defences.

Why are cyber attacks increasing?

We live in an increasingly digitalised world, from the way we sign contracts, to the way we consume media, our day-to-day activities are handled and tracked online more than ever. This, along with machine intelligence such as AI, means cyber attacks are not only here to stay, but are set to rise.

Are SME’s more vulnerable to cyber attacks?

You might think that SME’s are less likely to fall victim to cybercrime. But you’d be wrong. In fact, they are more at risk. Small businesses are three times more likely to be targeted by cybercriminals than larger companies. It’s terrifying news, especially if you thought you were flying under the radar.

So, you aren’t as safe as you think. More than half (54%) of SMEs in the UK had experienced some form of cyber-attack in 2022, up from 39% in 2020. If you’ve made it this far unscathed, then you’re one of the lucky ones. But it’s clear that if the rates continue, your luck could run out. It’s time to ask yourself, how prepared am I?

Why are SME’s more at risk?

Well, smaller companies often have fewer resources in place, less budget to inject into cybersecurity, and may feel they’re too small to be considered a worthwhile target. They’re a often a gateway for hackers to source information about larger businesses.

SME’s might not have dedicated IT teams, lack strong password management, and don’t have disaster recovery or backups in place to minimise damage, meaning they’re ill-equipped to handle attacks.

We talk more about the benefits to disaster recovery in a separate article, here.

What type of cyber attacks are used against SME’s?

There’s no one-size-fits all approach to cybercrime. Hackers use a variety of ways to gain access to a network. Phishing poses the largest threat, with malware and ransomware not far behind. On average, an employee of a small business with less than 100 employees will experience 350% more social engineering attacks than an employee of a larger enterprise.

Social engineering attacks focus on the psychology of persuasion. Victims lower their guard and are tricked into revealing personal information, opening malicious attachments, or clicking on unsafe weblinks. Falling prey to this kind of manipulation leaves you feeling duped and frustrated.

Cyber attacks: the aftermath and the damage

Let’s not ignore the serious financial impact of cyber attacks. Almost 1-in-5 (19%) of SMEs polled said that an average cyber-attack could cost their business up to £4,200. The financial loss is just the beginning. There’s a wider impact too: over one third (34%) experienced reputational damage in an attack, and 29% highlighted disruption to partner operations [Keeper 2022 Cybersecurity consensus report].

Damage can sometimes be irreparable, with the worst-case scenario being complete company collapse. Stats show that 60% of small companies go out of business within six months of a cyber attack. Is putting off cybersecurity really worth the risk?

What can I do to protect my business against cyber attacks?

In the time it’s taken you to read this article, you could have been hacked. SME’s need cybersecurity just as much, if not more, than larger organisations. Here at Arcus, we understand it’s stressful, but we’re here to get you protected and to make cybersecurity easy.

We provide cybersecurity solutions for remote-first and on-premise businesses of any size. From backup with JustProtect, virus protection with JustSecure, and password management software with Keeper, we have all your defences covered.

If you’d like to find out more information or chat to our team about your network security needs, contact us today. And remember, every minute counts.