Did you know that hackers attack every 39 seconds? That’s an average of 2,244 times a day.
Think it can’t happen to you?
If it can happen to some of the largest, most protected companies in North America, it can happen to anyone.
Just look at what happened to Twitter:
Bitcoin scam considered one of the largest social media cyber attacks of all time
On July 15, 2020, Twitter accounts of high-profile personalities including Elon Musk, Bill Gates and Barack Obama were hacked. Fake tweets were sent offering to double down on every $1k sent to a specific bitcoin address.
Apple, Kim Kardashian, Joe Biden, Jeff Bezos, and Uber also among those attacked.
The cyber criminals responsible for the massive breach managed to scam $180,000 worth of bitcoin through more than 300 transactions. With two accomplices in tow, the mastermind behind it all turned out to be a17-year-old recent high school grad from Tampa, FL.
So there you have it, anyone can be hit at any time. But you'll need a stronger case than that if you want to justify the spend to your CIO.
Justifying Data Security to Your Boss
CIOs (Chief Information Officers) are focused on two things: productivity within the IT department, and how much it will cost to keep data secure.
These stats speak for themselves. Show them to your CIO to justify the need for increased security measures.
375 new cyber threats per minute seen in Q1 globally (McAfee)
Data breaches exposed 4.1 billion records in the first half of 2019. (RiskBased)
Only 5% of companies’ folders are properly protected, on average. (Varonis)
Security breaches have increased by 11% since 2018 and 67% since 2014. (Accenture)
The average time to identify a breach in 2019 was 206 days. (IBM)
That’s terrifying. How much damage can be done in the six months prior to identifying the breach?
Still not convinced? Keep reading …
62% of businesses experienced phishing and social engineering attacks in 2018. (Cybint Solutions)
56% of Americans don’t know what steps to take in the event of a data breach. (Varonis)
Would you know what to do?
In the 2019 Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR), 94% of malware was delivered by email. (Verizon)
IoT devices experience an average of 5,200 attacks per month. (Symantec)
53% of companies had over 1,000 sensitive files open to every employee. (Varonis)
Equifax was found liable for their 2017 breach and was fined $425 million by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 2019. (FTC)
Is Your Business Prepared for a Cyber Attack?
Think you’re too small to be vulnerable? Think again …
43% of breach victims were small businesses. (Verizon)
Smaller organizations (1–250 employees) have the highest targeted malicious email rate at 1 in 323. (Symantec)
Think your industry is safe from cyber attacks?
Supply chain attacks were up 78% in 2019. (Symantec)
Ransomware attacks on the healthcare industry are expected to quadruple by end of 2020. (CSO Online)
Worse, that prediction was made before the pandemic took hold of the world.
Can you afford a data breach?
The cost of lost business averaged $1.42 million. (IBM)
The most expensive component of a cyber attack is information loss at $5.9 million. (Accenture)
The average cost per lost or stolen records per individual is $141. In Canada – $190. (Ponemon Institute’s Cost of Data Breach Study)
Damage related to cybercrime is projected to hit $6 trillion annually by 2021. (Cybersecurity Ventures)
Proactive Data Protection
Well, if those stats didn’t wake you up to the fact that a) every industry is vulnerable, and b) it doesn’t matter how large or small your business – cyber attacks can happen to anyone at anytime.
Don’t be caught off guard. Protect your data. Protect your business. Ask us about claiming your free risk assessment today. You’ll be glad you did.
