Cyberattack risks are increasing - are you prepared?

We regularly advise our clients on the commercial risks their business may face and we are not alone in our wish to raise awareness of cyberattacks.

Aviva is urging SMEs to enhance their cyber security as online hacking attacks increase, and the National Cyber Security Centre is also encouraging UK companies to bolster online defences following recent viruses and hacking events that have occurred in Ukrainian organisations, as part of the ongoing Russia/Ukraine conflict.

In fact Aviva cites cyberattack as the eighth most significant risk facing businesses now, in their latest ‘Risk Insights’ Report.

The research carried out by YouGov (commissioned by Aviva) interviewed 1,251 senior leaders from UK SMEs between 19 August and 11 September 2021. It revealed that 63% of businesses were worried about the threat of a cyberattack, with 37% saying they were worried in particular about operational disruption and loss of data. A further 31% were concerned about brand and reputational damage and 28% said financial impacts were a significant worry.

Incidents of cybercrime are increasing – the State of Phish report (Proofpoint 2022) revealed that 91% of UK companies surveyed had suffered at least one successful email-based attack in 2021.

Cyberattacks can have devastating effects for businesses that do fall victim to an incident, resulting in loss of income, reputational damage, loss of clients, suppliers and more.  It’s therefore important that you have the right risk management strategies in place to help prevent this type of attack, recovery plans and of course insurance, to help you continue to operate as you rebuild systems and recover from the event.

Aviva has suggested the following actions to help protect your business from a cyberattack:

• Back up all your data offline, regularly – at least once a week
• Ensure any software/firmware are updated on time, preferably within 2 weeks of their release date
• Ensure personal data is stored safely and securely
• Make sure any access and passwords are personalised, and stored securely – don’t rely on manufacturer settings
• Ensure firewall and antivirus software is installed, active and most importantly, monitored
• If you rely on outsourced service providers, make sure there is a back up plan in case they become victim of a cyberattack

You should also consider implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA). The US Cyber and Security Infrastructure Agency suggested that this could reduce the chances of a cyberattack by 99%! Find out more about MFA here.

The list of suggestions above is not exhaustive and there may be other measures that you can take to help prevent a cyberattack in your business. At Barnes we can work with you to create a risk management strategy based on a comprehensive assessment of the risks facing your business. This will include a cyber risk assessment. We can identify the risks that you’re facing now and help you to identify latent risks that you may not have even considered.

Once the risk strategy has been created, we can arrange the right insurance cover, at the right level to help you manage and recover from a cyberattack or other unexpected event. Insurance protection will help futureproof your business and bring peace of mind.

So if you’re concerned about the possibility of a cyberattack in your organisation and would like to put measures in place , we’re here to assist. Get in touch to speak to one of our experienced advisers, who’ll be pleased to help. Contact us on 01480 272727 or send an email to enquiries@barnesinsurancebroker.co.uk

Download Aviva’s cyber guide here.