Cybersecurity is essential for any business in today’s threat landscape. Your business holds invaluable sensitive information and if this information were to fall into the wrong hands, it could be used to cause a lot of harm not only to you as the business owner but also to your customers.
By taking a proactive approach to your business cybersecurity you are not only better protecting your business but also your clients. In this blog, we will provide you with information to better equip you to protect against potential threats.
What is Proactive Cybersecurity?
Proactive cybersecurity entails all the security processes and activities that are carried out on a regular basis within an organization to prevent risks. By taking this approach you are working on detecting threats rather than reacting to them.
By Taking a Proactive Approach to Your Business Cybersecurity:
- Reducing the likelihood of a successful cyber attack: By identifying and addressing potential threats before they have a chance to materialize.
- Minimizing the impact of an attack: In the event that an attack does occur, proactive security can help to minimize its impact by reducing the amount of damage that is caused.
- Enhancing customer confidence: By taking proactive measures to protect their data, businesses can instill greater confidence in their customers that their information is safe.
- Save costs associated with cybersecurity attacks: By addressing potential threats before they occur, businesses can avoid the costly consequences of a successful attack..
Proactive cybersecurity is ideal for businesses of all sizes. However, it is especially important for small to mid-sized businesses, which are often the primary target of cyberattacks. SMBs are a hot target for cybercriminals as they usually lack the budget and expertise for advanced cybersecurity protection.
Reactive Cybersecurity
Reactive cybersecurity is a responsive approach to security that only addresses threats after they have already occurred. This is in contrast to proactive cybersecurity.
Drawbacks of Taking a Reactive Security Approach:
- It can be difficult to anticipate all potential threats: Since reactive security only addresses threats after they have already occurred, it can be difficult to anticipate all of the potential threats that a business may face.
- It can be expensive: Reacting to an attack after it has already occurred can be much more expensive than taking proactive measures to prevent it from happening in the first place. Paying potential ransomware fees and not to mention the cost of downtime.
- It can ruin your business reputation: If a business’s customer data is breached, it can damage the customers’ trust in the company. This can lead to lost business and legal penalties.
- It can be time-consuming: Reacting to an attack can take up a lot of time and resources that could be better spent on proactive security measures.
If your business does not have the resources to implement proactive security measures, then reactive security is better than no security at all.
Why Cybersecurity is Essential for Your Business
There are many security risks for organizations that don’t invest in cybersecurity. These risks can result in financial losses, repetitional damage, and legal penalties. This may include the cost of data recovery, litigation, and lost customers. 43% of cyber attacks target small businesses.
The costs of these attacks can be significant. The average cost of a data breach for a small business is $36,000, and the average cost of a cyber attack is $117,000. Microsoft security reports that the total cost of cybercrime globally is $445 billion, a hefty number.
Businesses must invest in cybersecurity to protect themselves from these costly attacks. Cybersecurity is an essential part of any business’s operations and should be given the attention it deserves.
AIS Can Help With Comprehensive Cybersecurity
Here at AIS, we offer many resources and services to help prevent your business from becoming a victim of cyber attacks.
AIS provides the necessary proactive cybersecurity solutions that businesses need to protect themselves from cyber risks. Our team has the experience and the reputation to help businesses just like yours stay secure in the growing threat landscape.
Contact us today and see if outsourcing your security needs makes the most sense for your business.