Small business owner? Hackers can target you

NordPass and NordStellar, developed by one of the the best VPNsNordVPN has found that small private businesses are the most attractive to hackers. Its analysis found that a small, privately held retail company in the US would be a prime target for cybercriminals.

Nearly 2,000 global data breach incidents from the past two years were analyzed, extracting information about which companies are most likely to experience a cyber security breach. Companies were ranked according to the likelihood of a breach based on their industry, size, company type and country of registration.

The most breaches occurred in the retail sector (95 incidents), followed by technology (56 incidents) and business services (51 incidents). No industry or company is immune to breaches, but data indicates that private companies are targeted far more than any other. Of the 2,000 data breaches analyzed, approximately 1,600 involved private companies.

“While small retail companies are very attractive, other profiles are no less attractive to hackers,” says Karolis Arbaciauskas, Head of Business Development at NordPass. “This analysis has helped us illustrate which companies face greater risks and explain what steps can be taken to avoid them.”

Even tech companies are at risk

Specific technology-related sectors, including internet and web services, IT services and consulting, software development, and computer hardware development, all feature in the top 10 industries targeted. Arbaciauskas sees this as surprising, given that many assume these industries would be better equipped to prevent breaches. However, technology firms are seen by hackers as an attractive target, and even if the company is well equipped, human error can still occur. Therefore, firms should carefully assess their cybersecurity preparedness.

No country is immune to cyber attacks, but of course larger countries are in the spotlight and give hackers more opportunities to target them. Almost a quarter of the companies targeted were based in the US (489 incidents), with India (114 incidents) and the UK (73 incidents) being the top three.

A hacker typing quickly on a keyboard

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

No business is too small

Hackers prefer small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The vast majority of businesses targeted had 51-200 employees, and Arbaciauskas believes SMEs may underestimate their value to hackers.

“There are targeted attacks, yes, but hackers often target activities with a much wider scope, such as credential browsing, dictionary or rainbow attacks, which don’t choose their victims,” says Arbaciauskas. “Due to reused and weak employee passwords or downloaded malware, company credentials appear in leaked credential databases, giving hackers a chance to break in. For smaller companies, a data breach is a risk of going out of business – financial costs and reputational damage have significant consequences.”

How businesses can protect themselves against data breaches

According to a recent IBM reportthe average cost of a data breach in 2024 is nearly $5 million, as well as serious damage to a company’s reputation. It is therefore imperative that organizations do everything they can to minimize the risk of a cyber security attack and protect their business and customer data.

But what steps can be taken to help minimize the risks? Businesses can incorporate some of the the best VPNs for business in their work practices and there are a number of reasons why you should use a VPN at work.

VPNs are a security tool that encrypts a device’s data when using the internet. Encryption is vital for anyone looking to strengthen their digital privacy and protect their data online. VPNs add an extra layer of security for businesses, employees and their data. It acts as a shield against cyber attacks as hackers cannot see your data or information.

Although the price varies, VPNs are a cost-effective way to improve the security of your business, reducing the need to invest in a lot of hardware or technical support. Business VPNs are designed with multiple team members in mind, often using cloud-based systems, meaning all employees can access the same data and encrypted files. Our top recommended business VPN, Perimeter 81it comes with a number of features and can cover multiple team members. However, at a minimum of $8 per team member, it’s not the cheapest out there.

a man was sitting at a desk working on a computer

(Image credit: Future)

They are also very useful for remote workers. With post-pandemic changes in work habits, more workers than ever are working remotely, either part-time or full-time. With a VPN, employees can access a company’s network and resources from anywhere in the world, meaning workers can remain flexible without compromising company security.

If your workers remote likes to work in public spaces like libraries and coffee shops, it’s possible to connect to public Wi-Fi. This can be risky as hackers can easily steal data from unprotected users of these networks. Connecting to public Wi-Fi with a VPN makes any attack pointless because hackers can’t see what you’re doing and your private information stays safe.

VPNs can also protect your company and employees from phishing attacks, of which there are many the most secure VPNs including anti-phishing protections. They can identify and warn you about suspicious spam emails and texts, looking to trick you into entering your personal information and giving hackers access to your data.

Other ways to protect your business

VPNs aren’t the only way to protect yourself. and your business from the threat of cyber attacks. Using tools like the best password managers can generate and store complex, unique passwords, making them harder to guess and harder to access, thus protecting your data. Weakening or reusing passwords is a common cause of cyber attacks, and a strong password is the first line of defense against hackers.

Cyber security auditing is a useful way to identify potential weaknesses in your company’s IT infrastructure. Independent third-party audits can help companies prepare resilience and defense strategies against hackers, and also build their reputation as a secure company that protects customers and business data.

Finally, a simple way to combat cyber attacks is through education and awareness. Human error is a massive cause of data breaches. Employees may use weak passwords, fall for phishing scams, or use unsecured networks. Investing in employee cybersecurity awareness and training is a vital tool to protect your business. You can have all the protections in the world, but if you or one of your employees willingly gives out confidential information, then VPNs or password managers can do very little to prevent a data breach.