Firms advised to increase protection against data loss
MORE than one in 10 businesses in the Midlands have reported confidential information as being lost or leaked from their organisation on a daily basis, according to new research by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).
The 2013 Information Security Breaches Survey included 121 Midlands-based businesses. Based on the data they provided, 63% of businesses in the region said they suffered a systems failure or data corruption incident in the last year.
Half of companies in the region admitted their systems had been infected by viruses or malicious software, while a quarter said they had experienced theft or fraud involving the use of computers.
The majority of Midlands-based businesses (82%) said they had experienced a staff-related information security breach last year. Misuse of email access (65%) was the most prevalent staff-related breach of information security followed by misuse of web access (56%), unauthorised access to systems or data (55%), loss or leakage of confidential information (24%) and breach of data protection laws (24%).
Nationally, the survey revealed that 87% of small businesses across all sectors experienced an information security breach in the last year. This is up more than 10% on the previous year and cost small businesses up to 6% of their turnover.
The study comes as the Technology Strategy Board extends its Innovation Vouchers scheme to allow SMEs to bid for up to £5,000 from a £500,000 pot to improve their cyber security by bringing in outside expertise. BIS is also publishing guidance to help small businesses put cyber security higher up the agenda and make it part of their normal business risk management procedures.
Universities and Science Minister David Willetts said: “Keeping electronic information safe and secure is vital to a business’s bottom line. Companies are more at risk than ever of having their cyber security compromised, in particular small businesses, and no sector is immune from attack. But there are simple steps that can be taken to prevent the majority of incidents.
“The package of support we are announcing will help small businesses protect valuable assets like financial information, websites, equipment, software and intellectual property, driving growth and keeping UK businesses ahead in the global race.”
Commenting specifically on the Midlands picture for cyber security, Neil Ward, cyber security specialist at PwC in the Midlands, said: “Businesses in the Midlands are facing more advanced threats than ever before from unauthorised outsiders and the risks they pose mean that cyber security is gaining recognition as a boardroom issue.
“The business world has changed and companies of all sizes and across all industries are now routinely sharing information with business partners or employees’ personal devices. Business leaders need to make sure they are doing everything possible to protect information that is critical to their growth and reputation.”
