What is a Cyber Attack? 

A cyber-attack is a criminal activity in an attempt to expose, alter, disable, destroy, steal or gain unauthorised access to your IT systems.  A cyberattack is any type of offensive manoeuvre that targets computer information systems, infrastructures, computer networks, or personal computer devices. An attacker is a person or process that attempts to access data, functions or other restricted areas of the system without authorisation, potentially with malicious intent.  

Cybercrime poses an ongoing threat to small businesses. Therefore, it’s important to understand what a cyber-attack is, what one looks like, the measures you can take to safeguard your business and how to act if you fall victim to any form of cybercrime.

What is the risk to me? 

To understand the threat of cyber-attacks on small businesses, here’s a look at some vital statistics on cybercrime against small firms and UK businesses.

• SME’s in the UK are subject to 65,000 attacks every single day. 
• SME’s are nine times likely to be a victim of cyber attack than a burglary. 
• SME’s are becoming increasingly at risk, too a 14% increase from the previous year in firms reporting cyber-attack incidents.

Types of Cybercrimes 

Phishing attack

Phishing is the practice of sending fraudulent communications that appear to come from a reputable source, usually through email. The goal is to steal sensitive data like credit card and login information or to install malware on the victim’s machine. Phishing is an increasingly common cyberthreat.

SQL Injection

A Structured Query Language (SQL) injection occurs when an attacker inserts malicious code into a server that uses SQL and forces the server to reveal information it normally would not. An attacker could carry out a SQL injection simply by submitting malicious code into a vulnerable website search box

Malware

Malware is malicious software designed to cause harm to a targeted computer or server. Viruses and worms are malware, which is often launched as part of a phishing attack.

Denial-of-Service attacks

A denial-of-service cyber-attack is performed by hackers to halt the operation of an online service and might be carried out by inundating a system with requests or traffic, rendering it unusable.

Man-in-the-Middle attacks

Man-in-the-middle (MitM) attacks, also known as eavesdropping attacks, occur when attackers insert themselves into a two-party transaction. Once the attackers interrupt the traffic, they can filter and steal data.

Two common points of entry for MitM attacks:

1. On unsecure public Wi-Fi, attackers can insert themselves between a visitor’s device and the network. Without knowing, the visitor passes all information through the attacker.

2. Once malware has breached a device; an attacker can install software to process all of the victim’s information.

How to prevent a cyber-attack? 

By putting the right processes in place, you can safeguard your business.  There are some simple ways to improve your cyber security, stay protected and prevent cyber-attacks:

Cyber security training

Provide training for your staff on cyber security such as locking their computers when they’re not at their desk, regularly changing their passwords and not opening suspicious files or links.

Control access data

Control access to your computers and network by providing employees with their own password-protected user accounts and limiting authority to download software and access sensitive data.

Antivirus software

Install and regularly update antivirus and antispyware software, use firewalls for your internet connection, secure Wi-Fi networks with passwords, and keep the software for your operating systems and applications updated.

What is Cyber Insurance? 

Cyber insurance (also referred to as cyber risk or cyber liability insurance) is a form of cover designed to protect your business from threats in the digital age, such as data breaches or malicious cyber hacks on work computer systems.

A business is responsible for its own cyber security, but in the event of a cyber-attack having the right insurance will mean you aren’t alone. Cyber liability cover will provide crucial support to help your business stay afloat.

What does cyber insurance cover?

In the event of a cyber-attack, most cyber insurance policies will cover the first-party and third-party financial and reputational costs if data or electronic systems have been lost, damaged, stolen or corrupted.

For the business involved – the first-party — cover includes the cost of investigating a cybercrime, recovering data lost in a security breach and the restoration of computer systems, loss of income incurred by a business shutdown, reputation management, extortion payments demanded by hackers, and notification costs, in the case you are required to notify third parties affected.

Third-party coverages (that result from claims against you) include damages and settlements, and the cost of legally defending yourself against claims of a GDPR breach.

Who needs cyber insurance & What does it cover?

If your business uses, sends or stores electronic data, you may benefit from cyber insurance. That data, whether it belongs to the business or is sensitive customer information, is vulnerable to cyber-attacks and data breaches; cyber insurance can help with the cost of recovery.

This is why cyber insurance is an important part of your company insurance, as it offers financial support if the worst happens.

In the event of a cyber-attack, most cyber insurance policies will cover the first-party and third-party financial and reputational costs if data or electronic systems have been lost, damaged, stolen or corrupted.

For the business involved – the first-party — cover includes the cost of investigating a cybercrime, recovering data lost in a security breach and the restoration of computer systems, loss of income incurred by a business shutdown, reputation management, extortion payments demanded by hackers, and notification costs, in the case you are required to notify third parties affected.

Third-party coverages (that result from claims against you) include damages and settlements, and the cost of legally defending yourself against claims of a GDPR breach.

The next step 

Contact Grosvenor Insurance Brokers for further information, email admin@grosvenor-insurance.com or telephone 01244 324891

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