Companies fear their data is at risk to online attacks

The majority of UK companies have revealed that their data is not adequately protected against the risk of data breaches.

A recent survey revealed that nearly 70% of companies that took part feared their data would be at risk if their systems were breached.

Only 7% of respondents were confident that their data would be secure if a company’s security perimeter was breached. 97% of companies in the UK actually admitted that their systems were ineffective in protecting its data from hackers and any other unauthorised users.

Reality and perception

According to reports, the study showed that what is reality and what is perception is in fact very different.

The reality is that companies defence systems for protecting data is not adequate – which puts the data the company has at extreme risk as it’s poorly protected – leaving the company vulnerable to hacks and leaks.

Many companies invest heavily on just having perimeter security as their main form of protection. While they may be confident that by doing this they are effectively securing their data, this form of one layered protection does not always live up to expectations and therefore data is at risk!

A layered approach

In order for companies to offer better data protection, they need to be employing multiple layers of security. By having more than one layer of protection it makes it more difficult for hackers to gain access to data than just the standard perimeter layer.

More layers of defence makes it harder for those attacking systems to breach and access the data.

Use of encryption and two factor authentications (2FA) are tools that can add layers to help protect companies from having their data breached, as well as instilling confidence that their data is protected.

Customers are trusting companies less

The fact that data breaches are becoming so common because of poor data protection means that customer trust has taken a real hit. Cases such as the TalkTalk data hack which we help people with, or dating website hacks like the Ashley Madison and Beautiful People hacks, can lead people to be less inclined to share information.

In a study carried out by FireEye, it found that nearly two thirds of the 1,000 participants do not trust companies as much as they did due to increases in data hacks. Over 60% of participants say they give firms less data because of how frequent data breaches have become.

While companies are stepping up their layers of protection, such as Ashely Madison claiming to have implemented more data security tools in the wake of their hack, the damage has already been done. Breaches of data security are seriously impacting company reputations, as the FireEye’s study shows. Companies that do fall victim to breaches are viewed much more negatively by customers.

Claiming compensation

Companies need to make sure they are doing everything they can to avoid a data breach. A data breach can lead to customers claiming compensation if they face financial damages or distress. It’s therefore very important for businesses to ensure all steps are undertaken in protecting their data – for themselves and their customers!

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