A successful cyberattack can cause major damage to your brand. It can affect your bottom line, as well as your business’ standing and consumer trust.
Cyberattacks can hurt big brands and really test their customers’ trust. However, they are not typically an extinction-level event. It’s not the same for small brands. Although the likelihood of some type of breach is just as high if not higher, but their chances of making a full recovery are much slimmer.
The impact of a security breach can be broadly divided into three categories: reputational, legal and financial,
- Reputational damage
Reputation matters. We’ve all heard the Warren Buffett quote “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.”
And nothing can ruin a reputation faster than a cyberattack. Hackers gaining customer information makes big headlines, as Zoom and EasyJet found out. And cyberattacks are increasing in number and impact.
In April claims that half a million Zoom accounts have been hacked were raised in the media stating that the data from these accounts have been sold on the dark web.
Reportedly, these accounts are being sold for less than a rupee each and in some cases, they are being given away for free. Many businesses and schools banned the use of zoom following these media reports.
Trust is an essential element of customer relationship. Cyberattacks can damage your business’ reputation and erode the trust your customers have for you. This, in turn, could potentially lead to:
- loss of customers
- loss of sales
- reduction in profits
- reputational damage can even impact on your suppliers, or
- affect relationships you may have with partners, investors and other third parties vested in your business.
- Legal consequences of successful cyberattacks
One of the most rampant and personal threats to cyber security is data leaks, which can be extremely damaging to both an individual or business. All businesses hold a range of data, from customer insight to employee data which often contains sensitive information which can easily be put at risk if businesses don’t take a number of steps to protect.
Data protection and privacy laws require you manage the security of all personal data you hold – whether on your staff or your customers. If this data is accidentally or deliberately compromised, and you have failed to deploy appropriate security measures, you may face fines and regulatory sanctions.
- Economic cost of successful cyberattacks
Cyberattacks often result in substantial financial loss arising from:
- loss of sales and clients due to lack of trust
- theft of corporate information
- theft of financial information (eg bank details or payment card details)
- theft of money (Invoice fraud as an example)
- disruption to trading (eg inability to carry out transactions online or a ransom attack)
- costs associated with repairing or even replacing affected systems, networks and devices.
A KPMG survey indicated a cybersecurity event would cause 58% of customers and 86% of procurement departments to reconsider doing business with an affected company. And a study by the Ponemon Institute shows that data breaches can cause a 21% decline in the value of a company’s reputation and brand.
Despite these potential risks, several surveys indicate business owners and executives do not perceive cybersecurity events as a major threat to their brand’s reputation.
To keep yourself safe from cyberattacks, start with the basics.
- Protect your PC or Mac
- Ensure you do all the required updates
- Get an antivirus that detects known and unknown threats
- Look after your Passwords
- Choose passwords that are not easy to hack
- Use multifactor authentication wherever possible
- Change your passwords regularly
- Store your passwords securely
- Stay alert and aware
- Keep up to date and knowledgeable about new attacks
- Be alert before clicking new links
- Confirm before making payments to new accounts
About the Author:
At Security Everywhere we bring together award winning security solutions to give you maximum cybersecurity protection.
As part of our to educate and protect over 1 Million people from cybersecurity threats by 2023, our CEO, Francis West regularly hosts cybersecurity events to part with his knowledge and experience to keep the nation safe online.
Francis West has over 30 years of experience in IT systems, cybersecurity and using technology. He is passionate about sharing his knowledge to help companies and individuals protect themselves against cybercrime and his helpful time saving tips have helped thousands of people save over an hour every week.
In 2019, eCrime by far outstripped all other forms of crime both in terms of volume and cost. It is a real and very serious threat.
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