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Cybercriminals target small businesses

Data breaches at major institutions such as financial centers and federal agencies may grab all the headlines, but small businesses are becoming just as vulnerable. A new study published by Verizon found that nearly half of the incidents documented by researchers occurred at companies with less than 1,000 employees, CNN reported. In addition more than 30 percent of the data breaches targeted enterprises with less than 100 workers on staff.

These figures closely mirror the findings from Symantec's latest Internet Security Threat Report, which found that small businesses account for 31 percent of all data breaches. The situation appears to be just as worrisome in the U.K. as it is in America. The Telegraph reported that the British Government has expressed concern over the state of cybersecurity among the nation's small businesses, particularly in light of a recently released survey. According to that study, nearly 90 percent of small companies participating in the study fell victim to network breaches. Officials have been worried that these small enterprises may not have the financial resources to rebound from a costly breach.

One of the reasons that small businesses are so vulnerable to data breaches is that their owners often underestimate their value to cybercriminals. Small enterprises may contain a smaller amount of lucrative information than larger entities, but their less sophisticated defenses make them an easier target. 

"Small businesses retain very valuable information for hackers, like customers' credit card numbers, intellectual property, and money in the bank," Symantec security response manager Vikram Thakur told CNN. "Small companies are lucrative victims, too. That's making the target on their back even bigger."

Another worrisome trend is the lack of proper encryption methods at many companies. According to a study recently conducted by the Ponemon Institute, less than one-third of respondents confirmed that sensitive personal and business information was encrypted for safety.

Both small and large businesses provide worthy targets for cybercriminals. Protect in-transit data with an SSL certificate today.

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