{"id":21830,"date":"2012-06-27T16:34:48","date_gmt":"2012-06-27T06:34:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/power-up.space\/?p=21830"},"modified":"2012-06-27T16:34:48","modified_gmt":"2012-06-27T06:34:48","slug":"smbs-easy-targets-for-cybercriminals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.impulsegamer.com\/wordpress\/?p=21830","title":{"rendered":"SMBs Easy Targets for Cybercriminals"},"content":{"rendered":"

MELBOURNE, 27 June 2012<\/strong> \u2014 AVG (AU\/NZ) Pty Ltd<\/a>, distributor of AVG Technologies\u2019 award-winning AVG Internet and mobile security software in Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific, warns that many small- to medium-size businesses (SMBs) are still easy targets for cybercriminals.<\/p>\n

The recent Australian Business Assessment of Computer Use Security (ABACUS) survey from the Australian Institute of Criminology confirms the high proportion of SMBs that are continuing to take unnecessary risks with their business security. For example, less than 1 in 10 SMBs were found to be automatically updating their computers.<\/p>\n

As the inexorable drift towards the mass use of mobile technology in the workplace becomes manifest, combined with SMBs failing to employ the most basic protections, small businesses are leaving themselves vulnerable.<\/p>\n

Australia\u2019s smaller organisations are embracing technologies that facilitate mobile working, and yet are not fully alert to the additional risks to business security. For example, businesses are readily adopting social networking as a promotional opportunity to engage with customers, but further precautions such as web link scanning are required to protect against associated online threats.<\/p>\n

Michael McKinnon, Security Advisor at AVG (AU\/NZ), said: \u201cIf you are the owner of a small or growing business, chances are you think you are too small for cybercriminals to be interested in you.\u00a0 But you are well advised to think again.\u00a0 With many cybercriminals using automated scanning tools, unless you protect yourself they\u2019ll eventually find you.\u201d<\/p>\n

From his perspective, McKinnon knows that SMBs remain focused on traditional IT vulnerabilities like e-mail and web viruses and tend to be more concerned about losing access to files and replacing hardware. But the dangers also lie in security breaches. These are the costlier risk in terms of lost sales and revenue opportunities. According to the AVG SMB Market Landscape Report 2011, the average cost of a security breach is US$6,370. \u201cWithout safeguarding against emerging trends such as information theft and social engineering, SMBs are leaving themselves wide open to the cybercriminals,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

AVG (AU\/NZ)\u2019s guidance is to treat Internet security the same way as corporate governance and brand protection. McKinnon says: \u201cThis is a boardroom issue, not simply a technology debate.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo company should be operating without stringent online safety precautions in place, particularly when affordable, effective measures are readily available to them. Having full featured, automatically updated, always on anti-virus and Internet security<\/a> software running across all company computers and employees\u2019 mobile devices is a must for business continuity.\u201d<\/p>\n

The trend is for executives and staff to access e-mail and other proprietary data from more than one device. The risks of not securing them properly are very real. If malware on a mobile device<\/a> is allowed to remain undetected by users, criminals can gain access to confidential corporate data.\u00a0 The cost in terms of time and expense associated with cleaning these up is often substantial. A report by Computer Economics defines the ‘direct’ costs of malware infections as:<\/p>\n