Cybersecurity has always remained as one of the biggest challenges. And yet, rapid technological advancements have made this challenge even greater due to the higher influx of cybercrimes in the past few years.
But here’s a common misconception – that data breaches only happen with large companies. The truth is that regardless of the size of your company, including small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs), all are equally impacted.
In fact, small companies are sometimes the most common targets for attackers. But why is this so? Why do hackers love targeting these SMBs instead of larger companies?
Customer Information
Cybercriminals know that SMBs generally store and handle customer data that is easy to offload for a profit. These companies thus often gather sensitive information about customers, including their social security numbers, bank account credentials, and other personal details.
Third-Party Vulnerabilities
Hackers target SMBs as they are often associated with larger companies and third-party suppliers and thus can easily give them entry points into those valuable networks.
And as more prominent companies are harder to penetrate, attackers might first target small businesses who partner with these larger companies and use them in order to get into these larger companies’ more effective system.
Lack of Resources and Support
While larger organisations generally have a dedicated team for cybersecurity or security, many small to medium-sized businesses usually assign these roles to internal staff who are already handling the other daily operations in the company.
In fact, did you know that 1/3 of all SMBs do not have a dedicated function in their company for IT security?
Multiple Interfaces
Another common reason why hackers prefer targeting small businesses is due to the increasing number of Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices, creating interfaces for network attacks.
These organisations turn to IoT devices to leverage their benefits for growth and reduced costs. And the thing is, these hackers will exploit such weak devices to get into more critical networks.
Lack of Finances
As start-ups or small businesses often work on tight budgets, it is a common issue that they cannot prioritise cybersecurity. This is because these companies often avoid investing in resources, training and consultants for IT security, ignoring the latest updates and patches, thus leaving their systems vulnerable to attacks.
Inadequate Training
The sad thing is that while small businesses are too busy trying to establish themselves, they neglect training, educating and monitoring their employees on cybersecurity.
As a result, this often increases the risk of cyberattacks. And cybercriminals know how to exactly penetrate through the weakest links. These employees often download potentially malicious content from the internet or fail to secure their login credentials.
What should my business do then?
Before taking steps to improve cybersecurity posture, a small business owner should have a clear picture of their business’ potential risks.
After which, they should
Create a business continuity disaster recovery plan
Conduct penetration testing
Have regular backups
Install firewalls
Conduct employee training on cybersecurity
Did you know: eVantage Technology is a CSA-certified Cybersecurity Essentials company!
We are pleased to announce that eVantage Technology Pte. Ltd. has attained the CSA Cybersecurity Certification Cyber Essentials mark for the following scope(s): Management, Operations and Maintenance of IT Infrastructure!
This means that we have put in place good cyber hygiene practices, such as employee cybersecurity trainings, regular software updates and data backups, etc., to:
Protect our operations and customers against common cyber-attacks
Protect and secure all assets (hardware, software, data) our organisation is entrusted with against external viruses or malware
Equip our employees to practice good Cybersecurity hygiene through training in order to be the first line of defence
Be ready to detect, respond to, and recover from cyber incidents