The risk and cost of cybercrime are on the rise, what can businesses do?

George Parrott

Cybercriminals are getting smarter, faster and more aggressive, and businesses need to keep pace if they want to protect themselves and their data.

The cold, hard facts are that: There are 5.5 billion malware attacks and 6.3 trillion attempts around the world every year. And, South African organisations face the highest probability of repeat attacks, with 83% reporting more than one breach.

Speaking on Safer Internet Day, George Parrott, commercial partner at King Price Insurance, says that cyberattacks have gone from “possible” to “probable”.

“All South African businesses should be making concerted efforts to amplify their ‘cyber hygiene’, strengthen their firewalls and other IT security measures, and partner with an insurer that has a specialised cybersure product that offers financial protection in the event of a data breach.”

Parrott also notes that, while the sophistication and number of cyberattacks are on the rise, so too is the cost of dealing with them. The average total cost of a data breach in 2024 was $4.88 million – up by 10% from 2023, and the highest increase since the pandemic. “The financial costs of cyberattacks are often high enough to close smaller and even mid-sized enterprises down. In fact, globally, 60% of small businesses close their doors within 6 months of a cyberattack.”

Good cyber insurance can help to keep you in business by paying for legal and forensic IT professionals, defending yourself in court if you’re sued, publicly defending your reputation, covering financial losses and loss of income, and even paying ransom.

The insurer partners with industry experts that work with their cybersure clients to help safeguard their systems and prevent attacks. “Prevention is always better than cure. We show companies just how important it is to implement and maintain robust IT security measures like keeping software, operating systems and firewalls updated, and implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA).” On its own, MFA has been shown to reduce the risk of cyber breaches by 99.9%.

It is also critical that companies invest in educating their staff – with a particular emphasis on passwords. 81% of cyber breaches in 2022 were due to weak, reused, or stolen passwords. 78% of the world’s most common passwords can be cracked in less than a second, and it’s possible to crack an eight-character password in 37 seconds. But bump it up to 16 characters, and hackers could realistically be busy for 100 years.

“Given that cyber risk and cyber insurance are still relatively new territory, it’s crucial to work with a broker who can simplify the jargon and put your fears to rest. For our part, many insurers are rising to the challenge by providing user-friendly, practical cybersure policies that offer comprehensive cover, understandable terms, and affordable premiums,” says Parrott.