9 Small Business Cybersecurity Trends You Need to Know About in 2022
9 Small Business Cybersecurity Trends You Need to Know About in 2022
Over the past two years, cybersecurity has become an increasing concern for small businesses. With the surge of remote work after the onset of the pandemic, small businesses have become more vulnerable.
As the number of cyber-attacks has soared, so has the number of small businesses that have become victims of successful breaches.
Unfortunately, many small business owners still believe that cybercriminals only target large companies. However, 43% of cyber attacks target small businesses, according to Verizon’s Data breach Investigations Report.
To make matters worse, attacks are becoming more varied and inventive. This makes it hard for businesses in general and small businesses to stay ahead of the curve and adjust their cybersecurity strategy.
In this article, we’ll first examine the threat that cyber attacks pose to small businesses in 2022. Then, we’ll walk you through the nine trends that will define cybersecurity this year – and beyond.
What is the Danger from Cyber Attacks to Small Businesses?
According to a recent CNBC survey, many small business owners in America worry little about cyber security. For example, 56% weren’t concerned about becoming a data breach victim during 2022. And 24% of them said they were “not concerned at all.”
Furthermore, the same survey showed that small business owners are confident that they can face any cyber threat head-on. For example, 59% of survey respondents think they could quickly resolve any cyber attack should one occur.
However, recent statistics on cybercrime success among small businesses provide a reality check.
61% of minor to midsize businesses (SMB) reported at least one cyberattack during the last 12 months. And a study by CISCO revealed that 40% of those experienced over eight hours of downtime; as a result, causing significant financial damage.
In addition, the number of attacks on small businesses is increasing. For example, the last 12 months saw a 424% surge in cyber attacks on small businesses.
Despite this, a third of SMBs only use free, consumer-grade cybersecurity software – and one in five has no endpoint security at all.
Becoming the victim of a breach can be disastrous for small businesses since many lack financial resilience in the current climate.
On average, a successful cyberattack costs small businesses $ 25,000.
In addition, they have to deal with customers’ loss of trust if personal data is leaked. The last thing you want is to tell loyal customers that their details are now up for sale on the dark web.
It shouldn’t be surprising that 60% of SMBs who become victims of cybercrime go out of business within six months.
To ensure that fate doesn’t befall you, here are the top 9 attack trends you need to be wary of.
Internal Attacks are Becoming More Frequent
To start with, an increasing number of cyberattacks originate on the inside.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that a spy is lurking in the corner cubicle, only waiting to grab your customers’ private information and run off to Russia with it.
More often than not, one of your team members has a cavalier attitude towards cyber security measures and lets things slide. They reuse passwords, fail to install or update antivirus software, and don’t use tools such as VPNs. Even something as trivial as having one of their personal documents stolen could inadvertently endanger your business.
Another possible scenario is that current or former employees have a grudge towards your business and use the access that they (still) have to your data and systems to sabotage you.
Finally, some actively seek to strike it rich using your confidential data. For example, they might have been hired by a competitor or unknown entity to gain on-site access, or they might use the data to generate additional income for themselves.
Overall, the number of these internal threats is on a steep climb. According to a recent study by the Ponemon Institute, sponsored by IBM, it grew by 47% over the last two years.
Ransomware Attacks Continue to Increase
Ransomware was one of the most common cyber attacks in 2020 and 2021. In fact, according to Statista, ransomware made up 68.5% of all malware attacks in 2021.
What happens during a ransomware attack is that you unwittingly install a nefarious program on your local device. For example, it might be that you opened a malicious email attachment or clicked on a link on an official-looking but fake website.
Subsequently, that program infects as many devices as it can reach – sometimes even including your backup drives.
Then, it locks everything down – programs, data, backups — everything your small business needs to function.
To regain access to your data, you will be asked to pay a ransom to the hackers who targeted you. If you don’t, your data – and that of your customers – will be released to the dark web.
This type of attack isn’t new. It’s been around for over two decades by now – and there are over 120 separate classifications of ransomware.
But in 2022, they are becoming more frequent and hazardous. For example, in 2021, ransomware attacks increased by 151%. Similarly, new strategies such as double extortion – where hackers demand money twice – are becoming ever more common.
IoT Devices are Frequently Targets of Attacks
Next up, IoT attacks are booming. The Internet of Things has modified the focus and scale of many cyber attacks.
If your business uses smart devices or your team members have wearable health monitors, connected cars, or voice assistants, your business could become a target.
The fact that IoT attacks are on the rise shouldn’t be surprising. They increase in sync with the growth of the IoT industry as a whole. According to some estimates, there are currently 22 billion active IoT devices globally. By 2025, this number is expected to reach 30 billion.
Unfortunately, many IoT devices are particularly vulnerable to cyber-attacks. This is because they contain insecure components, have poor logging mechanisms, use hardcoded passwords, and offer no privacy protection to speak of.
To secure their devices, users have to take active steps, such as changing insecure settings and weak passwords and installing patches whenever they become available.
If even one member of your team fails to do so, their IoT device could be a convenient back door for hackers aiming for your company servers.
Secure Passwords and Multi-Factor Authentication are Indispensable
More likely than not, you’ve heard this mantra before: set secure passwords, enable two-factor authentication.
Unfortunately, weak passwords and a lack of multi-factor authentication are still common causes for security breaches in 2022.
To illustrate, the latest report on password security by CyberNews revealed that the top 10 most common passwords are still cringe-worthily easy to crack:
“123456”, “123456789”, “qwerty”, “password”, “12345”, “qwerty123”, “1q2w3e”, “12345678”, “111111”, and “1234567890”.
If a hacker intends to get into your system, passwords like these can be cracked almost instantly.
Similarly, many people fail to use two-factor authentication (2FA) or multi-factor authentication (MFA), even when available.
In 2FA or MFA, you have at least one additional step to log into your account besides entering your password. For example, you might need to verify the sign-in on a second device or answer a security question.
It takes perhaps thirty extra seconds. But that’s still too much for many people.
Twitter, for instance, recently revealed that only 2.3% of its users had activated 2FA.
Weak passwords cause even many high-profile hacks. For instance, the Colonial Pipeline hack, which ultimately led to a fuel panic on the East Coast, was only possible because a single employee failed to activate 2FA.
In contrast, activating 2FA and using complex passwords can prevent 100% of automated bot attacks, 96% of bulk phishing attacks, and 76% of directly targeted attacks.
Cloud Security is Essential
Another frequent vulnerability in the virtual setup of many small businesses is cloud services.
Many small businesses harness these services because they provide lower subscription and maintenance costs and scalability. Especially during the pandemic, cloud services were the only way to go for many small businesses who wanted to keep their operations going.
However, there are several serious drawbacks in terms of security.
First, many cloud providers are not compliant with regulations such as the GDPR guidelines, which could cause legal issues. Furthermore, some providers don’t guarantee permanent deletion of the data you entrust them.
Ultimately though, the biggest problem is that you have less control over your data and its visibility. For example, it’s often not transparent where cloud providers store their own data, who has access to it, and how well it is encrypted.
These weak points are prime targets that hackers are increasingly exploiting in 2022.
Phishing Stays a Major Threat
Another oldie but baddie — Phishing scams remain a significant cyber threat to small businesses in 2021.
As mentioned above, they are the most frequent point of entry for malware such as ransomware.
Especially during the heyday of the pandemic, cybercriminals sent countless phishing scams related to health guidance or financial support from the government.
The results show that small businesses are particularly vulnerable to this kind of attack, increasing the target in 2022.
This is because few small businesses invest in the necessary cyber security infrastructure to ward off these threats, and few train their team to recognize them effectively.
Overall, more than 80% of cyber breaches in 2022 are expected to happen because someone on your team fell for a phishing attack. Yet still, merely 73% of people say they feel confident in their ability to identify phishing emails.
Data Privacy Will Be Omnipresent
Most hackers are after a single target when they launch cyberattacks against your business: your customers’ private information. They will then proceed to either sell it on the dark web or use information such as social security numbers and credit card details for their own personal gain.
In response, data privacy is gaining in importance in 2022.
Many companies are making data privacy a priority. In the EU, for instance, the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) has already set up strict rules for how businesses can gather, use, store, and delete data.
But even in the US, many larger clients refuse to work with businesses that don’t have a dedicated data security plan.
Mobile Threats are Increasing
Mobile devices, from smartphones to tablets, are omnipresent. Consequently, it comes as no surprise that they’re a frequent target for cyberattacks.
The reason? People maintain far lower standards of cyber vigilance on their mobile devices than on their desktop computers. Even those who have antivirus protection on their laptops, for instance, rarely have the mobile app to go with it.
Yet mobile devices are frequently used to access unsecured Wi-Fi networks when we’re on the move – whether it’s at Starbucks while waiting for our morning coffee or at the airport. That’s why they’re frequent targets for spyware, data theft, cryptojacking, and ransomware.
AI is Booming in Cybersecurity
Finally, artificial intelligence (AI) is taking up an even more significant role in the world of cybersecurity in 2022.
Small businesses can harness advanced AI systems to identify threats such as phishing messages and password vulnerabilities automatically. In addition, many identity theft protection services use AI to monitor the dark web for any potentially leaked information.
Other valuable areas in which you can use AI to stay ahead of hackers’ attacks are network security and behavioral analytics. For example, an AI will give you a heads up if one of your team members suddenly behaves differently – either because their account has been compromised or because they’re an internal threat.
Conclusion
2022 will bring significant cybersecurity challenges for small businesses. Internal threats, ransomware, phishing, mobile, and IoT attacks are just some of them.
The best you can do is invest in solid cybersecurity infrastructure, draw up a strategy, and train your team to meet these challenges.
That way, you’ll be able to stay ahead of the threat curve and keep your business safe in the virtual sphere.
Image Credit: Tima Miroshnichenko; Pexels; Thank you!
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