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Nearly half of all UK businesses suffered a cyber breach in the past 12 months

New figures released by the government have highlighted the alarming scale of cyber security threat currently facing UK businesses, with nearly half of the our small and large firms facing some form of cyber breach in the past year.

The problem is particularly acute for large companies, with seven out of the ten surveyed for the government’s annual Cyber Security Breach Survey claiming they had suffered some form of breach or attack.

On average, the financial hit associated with a cyber breach for large businesses was around £20,000 but in some instances this could reach into the millions of pounds.

With some high-profile breaches in recent years, most notably the massive hack at TalkTalk in 2015, the reputational and financial costs to businesses can be huge, but in many instances simple safeguards and techniques could have prevented a large proportion of breaches.

According to the report, businesses reported a common breach, that is fraudulent emails, viruses and malware, as the single most disruptive form of attack, which the report’s authors claim could have been easily prevented if firms had taken advantage of the government’s own expert guidance.

It goes on to say that the threat against UK businesses is ‘growing’ every day, with the scale and size of the cyber risk facing firms big and small continually on the rise.

Ciaran Martin, Chief Executive Officer of the National Cyber Security Centre, said: “UK businesses must treat cyber security as a top priority if they want to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the UK’s vibrant digital economy.

“The majority of successful cyber attacks are not that sophisticated but can cause serious commercial damage. By getting the basic defences right, businesses of every size can protect their reputation, finances and operating capabilities.”

If you’re worried about protecting your business from cyber breaches, Bdaily Editor Jamie Hardesty, has compiled some simple tips to help firm up your cyber security in our Question of the Month.

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