It's easy to fool ourselves into believing that we would never be the victim of a cyber attack. We read about cyber attacks happening to large corporations. We hear about it in the breakroom at work. And while we give a sympathetic look to the employee whose credit card number was stolen, we falsely believe that such a thing would never happen to us. But it can, and it does.
Our cyber security is threatened every day. Your private information and that of your client's could be held for ransom. If you don't comply to the hacker's demands, the information will either be irretrievable, made public or erased and gone forever.
Cyber liability insurance will protect you, your clients and your business from vicious cyber attacks.
Who is the Most Vulnerable?
We're all vulnerable when it comes to a cyber attack. In fact, we have begun to learn that small businesses are just as (if not more) exposed to experiencing a cyber attack than companies like Target or American Express. The cyber security of small businesses is easier to penetrate because they are lacking in exactly that: security. Only 33 percent of small businesses in the United States have cyber liability insurance. Compare that percentage to the number of small businesses getting hacked (60 percent), and you'll wonder why more small businesses aren't investing in this coverage.
Gotta Use Protection
Inc. reports that cybercriminals go after companies with less than 100 employees. Cybercriminals believe that the smaller the company is, the easier said company is to infiltrate. This belief is in part very true: smaller companies don't generally invest in hefty cyber insurance packages because they believe they won't be targets of a security breach. As the numbers show, this isn't an accurate reflection.
According to Forbes, in 2015 the top five industries most targeted by cybercriminals were as follows:
If your small business functions in any of the above capacities, you're a target. Hackers have at their disposal a number of nasty software viruses that can infiltrate your data system and leave it in ruins. This is referred to as Malware. Malware is a term used to describe malicious software. Malicious software is a computer virus that interrupts computer systems and causes them to malfunction and shut down, it can steal sensitive information and infiltrate private servers. Malware is the cyber criminal's best friend.
The most commonly used Malware programs are:
Malware: This type of malicious software deactivates computers and computer systems.
Adware: This type of malicious software automatically downloads advertisements when a user connects to the internet.
Spyware: This type of malicious software allows the hacker to gather furtive information about another person's computer searches by transferring data from the victim's hard drive to the hacker's.
Ransomware: This type of malicious software disables a computer system until a lump sum is paid by the small business to the cybercriminal.
Phishing: While not a type of software, phishing is a common practice which attempts to defraud customers and/or clients of their financial information by posturing as an authentic company.
Trojan Horse: Named for the Greek myth, this type of malicious software is a downloadable program that promises to get rid of harmful cyber viruses. In reality, the Trojan Horse virus infects the computer and computer system with a multitude of viruses.
There are a lot of dangers out there when it comes starting a small business. Don't let cyber (in)security be one of them. Visit CyberPolicy.com today to find out more about cyber insurance.
