Over the last several years, small businesses have faced an alarming paradox: while cyberattacks are increasing in frequency and severity, they're spending less money on cybersecurity measures.

This paradox poses a considerable risk to businesses as they become more susceptible to cyberthreats. Explore its causes and potential repercussions.

Security investments tend to be costly. Small businesses on tight budgets may find these costs overwhelming and opt to prioritize other aspects of their business over cybersecurity such as customer acquisition or growth.

At the core of this mindset lies an assumption that cyberattacks won't affect them or that their costs associated with an attack are less than initial investments in security measures.

This line of thinking does not take into account the potential repercussions of an successful hacking attack, such as:

• Financial losses. Businesses could experience costs related to forensic investigation, system repairs and data recovery; as well as revenue loss caused by downtime, damaged reputation or interruption in operations.


• Liabilities. Businesses could incur legal ramifications for failing to protect customer data in an incident, potentially leading to costly lawsuits, fines and settlements.


• Reputational Damage. News of a security or data breach can quickly spread, leading customers to lose trust in your business and opt to do business elsewhere with stronger security measures. Loss in Customers. Should their personal information have been compromised, customers may seek out other businesses with stronger measures in place instead.


• Cost of Remediation and Prevention Measures. Companies often spend considerable resources to secure themselves after being the victims of cyberattacks; often more so than what it would have taken proactively to do so.


• Cybercriminals are cunning and persistent; unfortunately, many small businesses fail to realize this fact. Some may believe they're less desirable targets due to their size or industry - however cybercriminals consider them as easy targets.

Small businesses tend to be targeted due to weak security measures or limited resources.

Small business owners' limited knowledge and time commitment to cybersecurity is another contributing factor. Small businesses must wear many hats while also managing other aspects of operations - they may lack expertise in this area.

Small business owners cannot accurately evaluate risks and allocate resources.

Small businesses should understand the risks and repercussions that may result from neglecting cybersecurity.

Costly cybersecurity services represent an investment in your company's resilience and sustainability, so find an affordable managed service provider who can assist in keeping your organization secure.

Reach out to us at (404) 932-5940 to discover how we can assist.