According to a study, the cybersecurity solutions used by 36% of SMBs were deemed insufficient to identify or prevent the cyberattacks.
Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMBs) in India are exposed, under attack, and more concerned about cybersecurity threats than ever before, according to a new Cisco report titled Cybersecurity for SMBs: Asia Pacific Businesses Prepare for Digital Defense. According to the study, three out of every four (74 percent) SMBs in India experienced a cyber incident in the previous year, with 85 percent losing customer information to malicious actors and a tangible impact on business.
Cyberattacks cost more than INR 3.5 crore to more than half (62 percent) of SMBs in India who were victims of cyber incidents in the last year. Of these, over 13% of those polled stated that the cost of cyberattacks was more than INR 7 crore.
The study is based on a independent, double-blind survey of over 3,700 business and IT leaders with cybersecurity responsibilities in 14 markets across APAC region.
According to the survey, attackers tried to breach SMBs’ networks in a variety of ways. Malware attacks, which affected 92 percent of SMBs in India, topped the charts, followed by phishing (76 percent). The number one cause of cyber incidents, according to 38% of those who experienced them, stated that there was a lack of cybersecurity solutions. Meanwhile, the number one reason cited by 36 percent was because cybersecurity solutions were inadequate to detect or prevent the cyberattacks.
In addition to customer data, SMBs that had a cyber incident also lost internal emails (73 percent), employee data (71 percent), intellectual property (74 percent), and financial information (75 percent). Furthermore, 73 percent said it disrupted their operations, 76 percent said it impacted their reputation, and more than half (70 percent) said it caused them to lose customer trust.
SMBs, on the other hand, are rising to the challenge. According to the study, they are adopting strategic measures to improve their cybersecurity posture, such as conducting simulation exercises.
Cybersecurity Preparedness
While SMBs in India are more concerned about cybersecurity risks and challenges, they are also taking a deliberate approach to understanding and improving their cybersecurity posture through strategic initiatives, according to Cisco’s research. According to the study report, in the previous 12 months, 89 percent of SMBs in India completed scenario planning and/or simulations for potential cybersecurity incidents. The vast majority have prepared a cyber response (91%) and recovery plans (92%) in place.
SMBs are also becoming more aware of the sources of their most serious cyber threats. Phishing is the largest threat to SMBs in India, according to the research study, 50 percent of ranked it number 1 security threat.
The good news is that small businesses are increasing their cybersecurity investments, with nearly half (44%) of Indian SMBs increasing their security investments by more than 5% since the pandemic began.
These investments are evenly distributed across areas such as cybersecurity solutions, compliance or monitoring, talent, training, and insurance, indicating a strong grasp of the importance of a multi-faceted and integrated approach to establishing a strong cyber posture.