The Verastar team discuss poor cyber-security, and the impact it could have on small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) that supply larger companies throughout the UK.
Risk to SME revenue
A report issued by the UK government in February 2015 indicated that cyber-security ‘myths’ are putting 32% of the country’s SME revenue at risk. Statistics show that 22% of SMEs believe that small firms aren’t a target for hackers.
The government explained: “Small businesses are in fact a bigger target than ever because they typically hold far more data than the average consumer, but often don’t have any additional preventative measures in place to protect themselves.” 33% of UK SMEs experienced a cyber-attack from someone outside of their organisation in 2014.
KPMG study
This research further found that 66% of respondents don’t consider their firm to be vulnerable to a cyber-attack. The danger of this misconception was illustrated by a KPMG study of 175 procurement managers, in firms of over 250 employees, across a range of UK sectors. 70% of procurement managers questioned admitted that SMEs could to more to safeguard valuable client data.
Computer Business Review reported that the KPMG survey stated that 94% of procurement managers believe cyber-security standards are important when awarding contracts to SME suppliers. Almost as many (84%) said that they would consider cancelling their contract with an SME supplier if they experienced a data breach.
Fraud Defender
Commenting on the results of the research, George Quigley, partner in KPMG’s cyber-security practice said:”Cyber-security is not just a technical issue anymore; it has become a business critical issue for the UK’s SMEs. Larger companies are placing an increased emphasis on the cyber-security of their suppliers and increasingly the onus on SMEs to show that they are tackling this issue head on.”
KPMG’s survey shows that security is becoming increasingly important for SMEs. You should act to safeguard every the communication channel you employ to interact with customers. kinex, a brand operated by Verastar, currently provides a Fraud Defender service that monitor’s your phone lines to safeguard your company’s telecommunications.
Verastar
Verastar is a leading provider of essential business services to micro SMEs, operating under the following brands: Kinex, Clear Business Water, Titan Telecom, Marble Telecom, Economy Gasand 118777 Limited. Our business model is focused on providing a spectrum of consolidated services that disrupt traditional markets and create great savings, efficiencies and value for our customers.
