UK SMEs yet to experience a cyber attack are underestimating the financial impact by nearly £85,000, according to research from Sky Business.
Cyber-attacked SMEs are estimating average losses of nearly £31,000 for each day they are forced to close, with business decision-makers estimating they’d be forced to stop trading for an average of four days following a cyber attack.
Of the businesses surveyed that had experienced a breach in the past, the economic loss of being offline for this time was estimated at £123,984.SMEs that have not been victims of a cyber attack calculated the loss to be £39,633, more than 68% lower.
Aky highlights that further education is needed as 21% of businesses yet to experience an attack don’t think they would have to close while 100% of those who have been victims said they would.
Furthermore businesses with 1-9 employees were more likely to underestimate the impact of a cyber attack on their business, with nearly a third saying an attack wouldn’t cause their business to close.
Stacey Hill, Director of Sky Small Business Group at Sky Business said: “A vigilant defence starts with secure connectivity, and small businesses must safeguard this to protect their revenue.
Cybersecure connectivity should not be complicated. Easily accessible solutions that enable always on protection are crucial so SMEs can mitigate the risk of unauthorised threats.”