MOD raises awareness of cyber threats for SMEs
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has published new guidance regarding cyber security for businesses, aiming to raise awareness among companies – especially smaller businesses – about the importance of improving their cyber security programmes.
The guidance also aims to introduce the various public initiatives available that aim to support cyber protection among British businesses.
The MoD has released the guidance in response to numerous calls from businesses requesting information on the various initiatives available to them for improving their cyber security skills. The list of available initiatives will be regularly updated, the ministry said.
The MoD is also looking for other ways to promote a responsible and serious attitude towards cyber threats. A ministry representative, speaking to owners of small businesses and to cyber security experts at an event held at Coventry University, alerted the audience that cyber threats often come from well-organised groups with a lot of resources, and that cyber-attacks now have "astonishing" processes.
Small businesses should be aware that hackers and extortionists are not focusing on large businesses and are quite literally "out to get" small companies, he warned. Quoting figures taken from a National Audit Office report, the MoD representative explained that the cost of cyber-crime to Britain ranges from £18 billion to £27 billion per year, Computing.co.uk reported.
Small businesses and organisations were particularly threatened by ransomware – a malware system that locks users' networks and makes the use of computers and the access to their data impossible until hackers have been paid to remove it, the MoD spokesman added.