Why Small Businesses Are the Most At Risk for Cyberattacks

Oftentimes, whether it’s on the news or social media, reports surface of a major corporation suffering a data breach. We hear of not only the breach but also the catastrophic after effects, such as lawsuits, stolen information, what the corporation did wrong and how it will take significant time for them to recover. However, the common misconception is that giant companies are primarily targeted by cyber criminals or that they should prioritize security more than small to medium businesses (SMBs). In reality, it doesn’t matter how large or small, any business can be a victim. What’s even crazier to think is that in some cases, SMBs can be more targeted because of the perceived lack of resources to properly secure systems. Hackers aren’t always looking to get the big fish. Sometimes, they are more than happy to hit the local businesses who are not up to date on their cybersecurity efforts.

When it comes to how much a business invests in securing their IT operations, what’s generally assumed is that the larger they are the more likely they will suffer a data breach. And this makes sense. They have a bigger customer base and tend to have more revenue so hackers will view them as an attractive target. However, most small business owners don’t realize that they can be a target too. Stealing money isn’t always the sole reason why an attacker does what they do. Other times, they want to steal personal data simply because they know it’s not always safeguarded. In the case of SMBs, this is often true. Small businesses don’t always dedicate enough time and resources to protecting their and their clients’ data. It could be due to not having the man power or simply not believing it’s necessary to keep up with. Hackers see this as an easy opportunity and it’s only a matter of time.

I’ve always stated. No matter how small or large a business is, any organization can be breached. If one occurs, that business faces critical consequences such as downtime of operations, major financial loss, irrecoverable data, potential lawsuits and even the possibility of going out of business entirely. In the end, it’s imperative to invest in cybersecurity efforts. As business operations continue to rely more on technology (especially with the rise of AI), the need for security will only grow as well. Hackers know that and are willing to make anyone a victim too.