The government’s latest Cyber Security Breaches Survey was released in April 2024, revealing some shocking statistics and cementing the fact that cyber threats will continue to rise.
It’s reported that 50% of businesses experienced some form of cyber security breach/attack in the last 12 months. Charities experienced 32%, medium businesses 70% and large businesses with an income of over £500,000 reported 74%.
The total cost of cybercrime to the UK economy is estimated to be £27 billion per year, with businesses accounting for a significant proportion of this cost. Despite this, only 22% of UK businesses have a formal cyber security plan in place which is worrying.
In this article, we will explore the latest statistics in cyber security, the most common types of cyberattacks, how to protect your business and how Cyber Insurance can help.
The most common types of cyberattacks that businesses face:
One of the most high-profile and impactful areas of cybercrime is data breaches. This is where a business is hacked, and their data is held ransom or leaked to the public – not a position anybody wishes to be in!
While large corporations are bigger targets for cybercriminals, they have larger budgets to fight off any threats. For the small businesses with next to no budgets for cyberattacks, the consequences can be disastrous. It’s reported that the average clear up cost for small businesses after a data breach is around £25,700.
![A cybercriminal with his hood up. There are lines of code on two monitors in the background.](https://www.nortonib.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Cyber-Insurance-2-1.jpg)
Let’s take a closer look at some types of cyberattacks:
Phishing
Phishing is a cybercrime that involves criminals making contact through email, phone or text message to lure individuals or businesses into providing sensitive data. Over 83% of businesses and charity attacks were from ‘phishing’.
Impersonation
This refers to cyber cases where criminals have targeted individuals or businesses under a fake persona, business or name (possibly using real identities) to gain financially, or with the purpose of harassing, intimidating and/or threatening their victim.
Cyber criminals impersonating organisations in emails / online made up 35% of the attacks (37% for charities).
Viruses and malware
Malware is a term used to describe a cyber program / code that is created with the intent to harm a computer, network or server. A virus is a type of malware that has the ability to self-replicate and spread. All viruses are a type of malware, but not all types of malware are viruses.
Viruses and malware accounted for 17% of attacks on businesses (14% on charities).