Consequences of a cyber-attack – Implications on a business

The consequences of a cyber-attack on a business can vary depending on the severity of the attack. Many companies never fully prepare for such attacks. This could be because some business owners may feel they already have a strong security procedure in place, or they think a cyber-attack will never happen to them. After all, when you’ve worked hard to set up, build up, or expand your company, why would anyone want to take that hard work away from you?

Unfortunately, there are people out there who want to profit from your hard work. They can do this by compromising systems, stealing your data, and your correspondence. They can then try and sell the data to third parties on the dark web. They can also encrypt your data and then demand a sum of money to decrypt the data back. Do you know the consequences of a cyber-attack on your business?

Data is highly valuable to all businesses, and therefore, extremely valuable to cyber criminals as well. It doesn’t matter what size business you have. Every business will store some form of data, whether it’s your employee or customers’ personal information, or bank details. So, to a cybercriminal, any business is worth attacking.

Even though you’re doing everything you can to keep your business safe, these criminals can cause a lot of problems if you don’t take those extra steps to keep your employee and your customer data safe.

We’ve outlined just a few of the consequences your business can face if confronted by a cyber-attack and not keeping up with the latest security regulations.

1. Every business must comply with GDPR:

Every company in the EU must comply with GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations 2018). This isn’t optional.

The GDPR provides clear guidelines when collecting and processing personal information. For example, to collect customer data, the individual must agree to it. Also, a business must inform the individual on what their data is being used for, how their data will be processed, and how long the data will be held for.

Businesses are responsible for taking the right steps to prevent personal data from being accidentally or deliberately compromised, and they must do what they can to prevent a cyber-attack.

Always keep data safe and ensure you're complying with GDPR.

One of the most well-known companies that are always under scrutiny for their lack of compliance with GDPR is Facebook. Well-known companies such as Facebook are always in the news for their lack of privacy and GDPR compliance. This has led some businesses to believe they can get away with avoiding GDPR. However, they can face huge ramifications for their lack of security and care for their customer data.

It’s not just customer data that you need to keep secure, but employee data as well. Clothing store ‘Fat Face’ recently faced a phishing attack, where the hackers managed to encrypt all company data inclusive of employee data and customer data. Cybercriminals view data as an asset so be sure you’re keeping it secure. You can do this by backing up your data with the right business continuity plan.

Complying with this law might seem like an extra workload, especially as you must be keeping customer details up to date and doing regular checks to ensure you aren’t holding onto customer data for longer than necessary. But it can be a great step in growing your business.

If a customer can see you are complying with GDPR, they will know you are a secure company, and one they can trust. This could also help bring in more customers to your business.

2. An investigation might take place in the event of a data breach:

If a company did face a data breach, it may be put under public investigation. These investigations can take weeks as they attempt to find how the data was stolen.

A business should report a data breach to the ICO (Information Commissioner's Office) within 24 hours of the incident.

A business also must inform staff of missing data. This is because it’s potentially their information that has been taken. Therefore, they will need to take the right steps to change any details, such as bank details or account usernames and passwords.

This can cause a lot of inconveniences for anyone who's had their data stolen. It can also be incredibly time-consuming for business owners to deal with. Plus, it can also cause a lot of bad press, as well as business owners having to deal with a lot of concerned or angry customers and staff.

3. It can have a negative effect on business reputation:

One of the worst consequences of a cyber-attack is unhappy customers. Customers may be extremely distressed, upset, or angry if their data has been taken. This could cause them to cut ties with the company altogether. They may also tell family/friends or report it to their local newspapers or on social media.

If a business complies with the investigation and ensures they are respectful to customers’ concerns and frustrations, this might minimise the risk of customers taking further action and prevent it from escalating any further. However, it might not always be the case.

This could also cause damage to the business reputation if employees’ details have been compromised, and they may lose faith in working for the company. Again, dealing with this in the right and respectable way should prevent this. However, if employees know you have gone the extra mile to stay up to date with GDPR and security, they may be understanding of this incident.

4. Consequences on company finances:

The biggest effect a security breach can have on your company is on your business’s finances. A data breach can lead to a huge fine. Especially if you haven’t been complying with GDPR or keeping up to date with the latest security. Though a business can bounce back from this, it can be more difficult for a smaller business.

Even if a company can bounce back or afford the fine, there’s no guarantee the same customers will want to continue buying or using their products or services. That goes for any potential new customers.

On top of this, if employees decide they no longer wish to work with the company, it could cause a shortage in staff.

Finally, remember that having insurance in place won’t protect you from security breaches if you don’t have the right measures in place, to begin with.

At CapNet, we’ve heard ‘I didn’t think it would happen to me,’ far too many times. But it can happen to anyone, which is why we want to help. By following our future blogs posts, we hope to help you learn about some of the consequences a cyber-attack can have on a business. Plus, we will also provide any tips you can take to stay safe, and services we can offer to help keep your business secure.

Top five ways to mitigate the risks of a cyber-attack?

End user training - Training is a fundamental part of risk reduction. Empowering your team to identify and report security threats is fundamental for all businesses.
Spam filter - A spam filter can significantly reduce the risk of phishing and spear phishing emails reaching end users. Spam filters also can stop emails containing viruses from landing in people’s mailboxes.
Penetration testing (PenTest) - this process involves testing your public-facing infrastructures such as websites, firewalls, servers, and external boundaries.
Business grade managed antivirus for all devices - a business is only as secure as its weakest link. Therefore, all users should be protected with the same level of solution throughout
Adopt the Cyber Essentials framework internally within the business. Cyber Essentials is a government-backed framework that aims to raise awareness and reduce risks.