Cyber security breaches for businesses have increased, survey suggests

The Information Security Breaches Survey 2015, published by Digital Economy Minister Ed Vaizey on 2 June, shows the scale and cost of security breaches for business has nearly doubled.

The average cost for big business now starts at £1.45 million, up from £600,000 in 2014, while an online security breach for a small or medium sized business can now reach as high as £310,800, up from £115,000 in 2014.

The research also found that nearly nine out of ten large organisations surveyed suffered some form of security breach and despite an increase in staff awareness training, people are still just as likely to cause a security breach as a virus or malicious software. Additionally, the survey showed a drop in organisations who increased their information security spending, with fewer expecting to increase spending in the future.

These findings have prompted the government to urge businesses to take action against the cost of cyber security breaches. Ed Vaizey said: “The UK’s digital economy is strong and growing, which is why British businesses remain an attractive target for cyber-attack and the cost is rising dramatically. Businesses that take this threat seriously are not only protecting themselves and their customers’ data but securing a competitive advantage.

“I would urge businesses of all sizes to make use of the help and guidance available from government and take up the Cyber Essentials Scheme.”