According to Business Wire, the results of the 2019 Travelers Risk Index are in: cyber risks are the new top concern among businesses since the survey began in 2014.
Around 1,200 business leaders took part in the survey; 55 percent said they worry about cyber risks over medical cost inflation, benefit costs, attracting and retaining talent, and legal liability. The number of small business respondents that have suffered a cyber attack has increased, too. From 2015 to this year, the amount has risen from: four percent to 12 percent in small businesses, 10 percent to 20 percent in medium-sized companies, and 19 percent to 33 percent in large businesses.
“More companies are experiencing cyber attacks,” said Tim Francis, Enterprise Cyber Lead at Travelers. “The cost of a single breach to a small business can easily reach a substantial amount of money on top of the time it takes to restore the business, so protecting a company’s assets with a cyber insurance policy is critical.”
Additionally, 80 percent of businesses said that “it is difficult to keep up with the every-changing cyber landscape,” and 36 percent said they felt that “today’s business environment was more risky.”
Minimizing the risk:
Even though cyber risks on the rise, so are the ways businesses are protecting themselves, Business Wire says. Based on the 2019 Travelers Risk Index, surveyed businesses are guarding their assets and data by:
- Investing in a cyber insurance policy (51 percent of companies)
- Putting together a business continuity plan (47 percent of companies)
- Completing assessments for cyber risks on themselves (49 percent) and their vendors (41 percent)
- Updating computer passwords (74 percent of companies)
As a result, decision makers who are concerned about the possibility of an attack might look how other companies have increased security measures, regardless of which vertical they’re in. After all, cyber attacks don’t discriminate.
“One cyber attack can put a company out of business,” Francis said. “Taking the threat seriously and implementing a risk management program that addresses possible exposures can help a company not only avoid an attack but also recover from one as quickly as possible.”
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