A research conducted by British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) suggests that one in every 5 British businesses is being targeted by Cyber criminals. The said trend is said to be continuing from the past couple of years on a consistent note and is said to head further into future. The BBC study also suggests that large companies which are having more than 100 as headcount are said to most vulnerable to cyber attacks.
British Chambers of Commerce estimates that 42 % of big businesses had fallen victim to cybercrime, compared to 18% of small businesses in the past couple of years. This includes big companies like Yahoo, Telecoms like Talk Talk, and dating websites like Ashley Madison who lost data related to millions of accounts.
“Firms need to be proactive about protecting themselves from cyber threats. But we are witnessing the other side trend where firms are reacting after an attack”, said Adam Marshall, Director General, BCC.
Adam added that businesses should also be mindful of the extension of data protection laws coming into force next year. And as per the new laws, companies doing business in Europe- despite Brexit will have to pay tough penalties, if they neglect data protection steps.
Means, companies should increase their responsibility and requirements needed to protect their data.
At the same time, the government should also take the initiative of guiding businesses on how to report an attack. The reporting path should be clear and should involve officials from the police department. This in-turn gives an increased clarity around the response options available to the victims, which will help minimize the crime rate in cyberspace.
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