Which Business Sectors are Most in Need of Cyber Security?

Cyber security should be a high priority concern for businesses of all types, especially given the proliferation of technology into virtually every aspect of our organizational processes. Still, many organizations have given too-little thought to risk management and cyber-security procedures in the workplace.  A formalized, enterprise-wide security awareness program can help to ensure the protection of important private information, as well as avoid huge problems for the company in the long run.

Regardless of a company’s size or what they do, the risk of a security breach shouldn’t be taken lightly.  However, there are certain business sectors that seem to attract the attention of cyber criminals more than others.

Business Sectors Most at Risk

Healthcare

The healthcare industry is a prime target for cyber criminals due to the type of customer information they process. According to the PwC Health Research Institute, healthcare security breaches may cost up to $200 per patient record, including less tangible losses such as reputational damage and loss of business. In the last decade, there have been 2,546 healthcare data attacks (of 500 records or more).  This represents the theft of 189,945,874 healthcare records, exposing 59% of the population. Healthcare data breaches happen at a rate of more than one per day.

Manufacturing

The manufacturing sector, which encompasses automotive, electronics, and pharmaceutical companies among others, have always been a favorite target of cybercriminals. This is due to the fact that cyber attackers are financially motivated. Because manufacturing firms have large amounts of proprietary data, plans and schematics, this intellectual property can be sold to the highest bidder – generally a competitor, or even ransomed back to the company itself. While healthcare and financial services companies have been well schooled in preparing for these attacks, it has only been since the rise of the IoT (Internet of Things) that manufacturing companies have begun to take real notice of the need for data security planning.

Financial Services

Big international banks have long been a favorite target for obvious reasons. The private financial data and access to accounts is so irresistible to hackers that financial services have invested significantly in cybercrime security awareness and protection. The banking industry incurred the most cybercrime costs in 2018, with an average cost of $18.3 million per company affected. Because so many people use their phones and mobile devices to do their personal banking, as well as to perform trades and move money, the level of vulnerability is even higher for these institutions.

Education

Similar to the healthcare business sectors, the education sector represent a treasure trove of desirable information to steal –  private contact information, credit card numbers,  government IDs such as driver’s licenses, and social security or tax information. Educational records are also highly sought after by people looking to fake a background in order to land a job. Some hackers simply changed grades or deleted records, for their own personal gain a high tech version of an old trick.  Hacking and malware are the most typical cyber attacks to the education, which makes sense considering the number of possible points of entry into the network walking around campus. Students, faculty, and other employees have open sessions all day long, leaving private data accessible to hackers.

As stated in many of our articles, cyber crime is rising across the board; and across all business sectors. No matter which industry you work in, the need for cyber security is always needed. If you aren’t sure where to start, call Alliance IT of Sarasota. We can help you to protect your network and your data, so that you don’t become a statistic in 2020.