More than a fifth of businesses in the United Kingdom said they experienced a cyberattack in the last year, but perhaps even more surprising is the fact that cyberattacks are now more common than either physical theft or fire, according to a recent survey from Aviva.
The research revealed that businesses are 67% more likely to face a cyber event than a physical theft and five times more likely than a fire.
More than a third (35%) of large businesses responding to Aviva’s survey experienced a cyber event in the last year, while one in 10 (9%) small businesses did.
For the businesses experiencing cyber events, 31% had their operations disrupted as a result and 21% lost data or were locked out of their systems. Business interruption claims came in at an average £21,000 per incident, according to Aviva, which noted that businesses can face much higher losses ranging “into the tens or even hundreds of millions of pounds.”
For those that didn’t have an event, 20% admitted they don’t know what they would do if faced with a cyber event – especially small businesses.
“Not only does this increase the risk of further damage, it means that businesses also risk being non-compliant with data protection laws. Depending on the seriousness of the incident, businesses may be required to alert the ICO within 72 hours and sometimes also notify impacted individuals,” Aviva warned.
Many organizations responding to the survey also don’t carry cyber insurance – just 17% of small businesses said they bought cyber insurance and 17% didn’t know it exists.
“Though our research shows that one in three (31%) businesses see cyber as the biggest risk to their businesses, it’s worrying to see that many businesses do not know how to protect themselves from this emerging threat,” said Stephen Ridley, head of cyber for Aviva. “Many businesses do not have cyber cover, leaving them exposed to high, unforeseen costs and significant business disruption which could amount to tens of thousands of pounds.”