

While there is a large amount of reliable, publicly-available data regarding threat vectors, attack types and the high-level financial impacts of cybersecurity incidents, there fails to be a simple consolidation of cost elements contributing toward the bottom line.

In this article, we will explore a few of the less considered costs that are not likely to cross your mind unless you have navigated a breach first-hand. When it comes to cybersecurity incident costs, there are dozens of factors impacting the bottom line. The statistics laid out in the above paragraphs are only the tip of the iceberg. If that number isn’t hefty enough for you, Unit 42 also reported that the highest ransom demand witnessed over the last five years was $15,000,000, while the highest paid ransom for a Unit 42 matter was $5,000,000.

Unit 42 reported that requested ransom amounts rose nearly 200% from 2018 to 2019, averaging $115,123 in 2019. This report paints a picture of why ransomware is such an attractive choice for cyber criminals, stating, “If you’re a threat actor, there is simply no better way to monetize illicit access to a network than encrypting your victims’ files and demanding payment.” Ransom demands are costly and keep trending higher. What about cybersecurity incidents that don’t necessarily involve breached customer PII records? According to Unit 42’s 2020 Incident Response & Data Breach Report, ransomware was the most common compromise method of 2019. If we increase the number of breached customer records to 50,000, we are looking at costs in the neighborhood of $7,500,000. This means that if only 10,000 customer records were compromised, a small business could face breach costs starting at $1,500,000. Multiple sources have reported that the average cost per compromised customer’s Personally Identifiable Information (PII) record was around $150 in the year 2019. We can crunch some simple numbers to demonstrate the cost of cybersecurity breaches even in an objectively miniscule one. Novice hackers have a much greater chance of successfully infiltrating an organization with low-funded security solutions and minimal resources (financial, human, technical, etc.).

Cyber criminals are aware that small businesses often have a small security budget and could be easier targets. The general consensus among industry experts is that an organization facing a cybersecurity breach or attack is not a matter of “if,” but rather “when.” Even seemingly “minor” cybersecurity incidents can have devastating effects on the financial, reputational and operational success of an enterprise.Īlthough it may appear as though massive conglomerates are the only ones paying big bucks after a breach (eBay, Anthem, and Equifax, just to name a few) this could not be further from the truth. Cyber incidents are no longer a far-fetched concept within the realm of what could possibly go wrong. According to IBM and the Ponemon Institute’s 2020 “Cost of a Data Breach” report, it was determined that the average total cost of cybersecurity breaches in the United States of America, between August 2019 and April 2020, was $8,640,000. IntroductionĬybersecurity incidents are expensive. In this article, Palo Alto Networks Principal Consultant, LeeAnne Pelzer, explores some of the less frequently considered cost of cybersecurity factors that are embedded within the modern cybersecurity incident, as well as ways organizations can financially benefit in the long-term by proactively investing in their cybersecurity. Many executives fail to consider the web of “hidden costs” associated with responding to and recovering from a cybersecurity incident. In recent years, these headlines tend to also reference monumental fines, sliding stocks and diminished customer loyalty. declaring that yet another organization has fallen victim to a cybersecurity attack.
#PONEMON COST OF A DATA BREACH 2020 HOW TO#
Learn the value of cybersecurity and how to invest your money wisely.Ībstract: It seems as though each day there is a new headline in the U.S. This is the first of a two-part blog series, breaking down the cost of dealing with a cybersecurity incident versus the cost of investing to prevent an incident. 日本語 (Japanese ) How Investing in Security Now Can Save Big Bucks Later
