Most businesses are aware of the fact that investing in initiatives and protocols for preventing data breaches is actually cheap compared to the aftermath of a targeted data breach. However, a substantial number of businesses are still under the impression that their business is under no real threat of a data breach due to the nature of their industry.
What these businesses have to realise is that hackers are very creative in devising ways to hack systems and use sensitive information for their own personal gain. The following are just some of the main consequences of a serious data breach. For more information about secure data disposal, please get in touch with one of our team today.
1) Financial Costs Of Different Data Breaches
The cost breakdown of the loss a business can suffer from a data breach actually varies upon the business size and their industry. Some businesses deal in sensitive financial information that hackers will use to their advantage to cost the business thousands of pounds, while hackers can also blackmail a business into dealing out a staggering amount of money. A business may have to deal with the following approximate costs if their security network has been seriously breached.
- Breach notification costs: £5,000 +
- Credit monitoring for customers: £20-£30 per compromised credit card
- Reissuance penalties: £4-£10 per card
- Legal Fees : £20,000 - £100,000
- Forensic investment fees: £100,000
- Merchant compromise fines: £50,000
2) Hampers The Operation Of The Business
After a security breach a business cannot proceed with the operation of their daily activities as if nothing happened, as it takes time to understand the true nature of the breach. A whole team of professionals will have to analyse the system before they are able to pin-point the breach point and will then have to trace the level of the breach. These professionals will normally take a few business days to fully understand the breach and this will hamper the operation of the business.
Until the business understands what information has been leaked, and until they devise new security protocols, they will not be able to commence with their normal business activities. Some businesses have to shut down for months on end until they can fully resume business as usual.
3) Reputation Damage
This is one of the most detrimental effects of a security breach and it can sometimes cause a successful business to shut down. When a client provides sensitive information to any business, they automatically assume that the business has taken every step to protect their information. If a breach occurs they will lose their trust in the business and will prefer a competitor. This has cost a substantial number of businesses thousands of pounds in lost revenue because their clients refused to entrust them with their personal or sensitive information.
Most security breaches are heavily publicised and it takes a huge toll on the company’s good will and reputation.
Secure IT Asset Disposal From Absolute IT
It is crucial that every business takes concrete steps to improve the integrity of their security system to ensure that a breach never occurs. To learn more about the different ways a business can protect their information and data, please get in touch with one of our data security specialists today.
