Security Concerns For Your Company Not To Be Taken Lightly
Through the passage of time, especially within this current blistering age of information, it would appear as though the rate at which technological advancements occur and are thrust into the functional business world has grown exponentially. Although the advent of the internet and the myriad of luxuries it has offered are clearly worthy of a great deal of praise and appreciation, one would be foolish to deny the ever-present danger of shadowy e-figures eager to hack a hefty slice of capital as a result of these breathtaking breakthroughs. According to Small Biz Technology, "hackers are especially fond of small businesses and the ability to illegally transfer money due to weak links."
Heinous criminal acts of hacking may not always be as large a broadcast story as a bank robbery or car theft, yet the damages suffered by the victim at the hands of a skilled hacker have the potential to dwarf those experienced in traditional examples of theft. For example, The New York Times reported that a hacker was able to snag more than $50 million last month from an experimental project centered around a form of virtual currency, similar to Bitcoin. Admittedly, this example is extreme, staggering and frankly terrifying, but there are also paralyzing statistics that suggest the long-term effects of successful hacks against a business could be almost as catastrophically detrimental in finality.
A study commissioned by identity management service provider Centrify, and published on VenterBeat, yielded survey results which are not to be taken lightly. Some of the most alarming results reveal:
- 66 percent of adults express they are at least somewhat likely to discontinue business with a company that has suffered a cyberbreach.
- 41 percent of adults hold companies entirely responsible for the cyber breaches they incur.
Although the initiators of this study are also the ones who benefit from the scare factor of these results, these statistics should not be ignored by any business, especially the entrepreneur and his small business. The advice to watch out for and guard against online hackers is quickly becoming as echoed as the timeless "don't run with scissors." A business owner simply cannot be too careful while on the internet, especially regarding the important information that many businesses entrust to the web.
This article was written by Michelle Guilbeau of Examiner.com for CBS Small Business Pulse.
