How Just One Security Breach Could Cost You $36,000

What are the true costs of a data breach for a small business like yours?

In the past few years, more and more small businesses have been targeted by hackers. Unfortunately, the lack of protection and proper cybersecurity solutions makes small companies one of the top targets for these attackers.

The main issue is that even a quick security breach can cost a company anywhere from $36,000 to $120,000. Big numbers. Could your company withstand a six figure hit to its bottom line? Breaches can easily become a massive issue for your company and could even put your company out of business.

Most small companies cannot afford such a massive expense. It’s important to know how to prevent a data breach and keep your business safe but you might wonder what goes into that five to six figure price tag.

Potential costs of a data breach

Around 90% of all small business owners believe that they are safe against a potential data breach. But hackers and scammers know different. They understand that most small companies tend to lack the resources, time, and knowledge needed to properly protect themselves.

In 2017 the median cost required to solve a malicious attack was roughly $244 for every stolen record. And in the US the number of stolen records per small to medium sized business breach was more than 24,000. Aside from actively losing important business information, there are still additional costs.

For example, company’s with breaches are required to notify affected customers about the data breach. That includes postage, consultant fees, contact lists, and more. This alone can run a small company tens of thousands of dollars, a staggering number considering the minimal costs for prevention.

Then you have industry penalties and fines that you receive from industry authorities. More than that, local governmental offices and even your own financial institutions might not agree to work with your small business any longer thanks to your unsafe network.

Another associated cost comes in the form of digital forensic investigations. These can cost thousands upon thousands of dollars because the investigators will accumulate and analyze all the available breach information. And the company that suffered the breach is required to pay the investigation costs out of pocket. Not to mention, you also have identity theft repair, card replacement, and monitoring services that you have to pay for aswell.

Unfortunately there was a 424% increase in data breaches for small businesses between 2017-2018. If you’re not properly protected, then you might end up becoming a target for these attackers. It’s extremely important to find a good and robust way to protect yourself against such attackers, and the only solution is to invest in a stellar cyber-security system!

Non direct costs of a data breach

The direct costs of a data breach are the ones that will hurt you the most. But what you don’t realize is that the bad outcomes of a data breach won’t stop there. More than 30% a breached company’s customers will decide to stop using the business in question.

Not only that, but roughly 57% of customers notified of data breaches from a company will lose total confidence in that company.

Losing a third to half of your client base could be devestating short term, and it can end up bringing in massive issues for your business in the long term.

Your business will also have to deal with bad press. Translating into heightened difficulty onboarding new clients and customers. Not to mention, the time and money you will need to spend recouping your reputation with great marketing campaigns and improvements to your current security systems. All these things can be avoided as long as you find the right IT professionals to help you identify the problem and tackle it as quickly as possible.

Are there any additional hidden costs related to a data breach?

Aside from the ones listed above, we could also mention the increase in insurance premiums. Insurance companies will consider your business a liability, so if you want to insure anything, their prices will go up. Sometimes they can be jacked up 200%, based on the type of data breach.

Conclusion

Data breach costs can be overwhelming, especially for small businesses. As you can see above, a data breach will bring in major losses, and it might even damage your business beyond repair. You really need to make sure that you find a reliable team to help you prevent such a breach from ever happening.

It’s easy to think that your business will not be targeted. But you have to wonder whether you’re willing to risk it.

No small business is fine with losing up to $100,000. The fact that the cost of a data breach can exceed even $100,000 should be motivation enough to ensure it never happens to your company.

The best thing you can do to handle this risk is to hire an IT professional as fast as possible. Tech Masters offers you reliable, high standard security solutions that will help protect your company from any attacks as fast as possible.

Nothing is more important than bringing in a few extra layers of protection between your company’s data and hackers. It’s better to invest in cybersecurity systems instead of having to deal with the aftermath of a data breach. Get in touch with our team today and you will be more than impressed with the results and resilience provided by the entire process!