‘Pakistan experienced at least one cyber incident in last two years’

ISLAMABAD: A global cybersecurity firm revealed that 88 percent of small businesses in the Middle East, Turkey and Africa (META) region including Pakistan experienced at least one cyber incident during the last two years.

A new study conducted by Kaspersky found that 76 percent of small businesses around the world also affected by at least one cyber incident during the last two years. The consequences of those attacks were severe, and resulted in leaks of confidential data, reputational damage, loss of customer trust and more. Around nine percent of small companies worldwide and in META even had to suspend certain areas of their business operations.

Examining the reasons for these cyber incidents, it’s clear that one of the main causes was the use of weak passwords or failure to perform regular password updates. This reason accounts for almost a quarter, second only to downloading malware.

However, by implementing robust password protection measures, small businesses can significantly enhance their security posture and safeguard their sensitive data.

For World Password Day, Kaspersky is unveiling simple but crucial cybersecurity measures for password protection in a small business environment.

To address this global issue, Kaspersky suggested strengthen small businesses’ password policies by creating strong passwords and ensure that passwords both robust and unique for each corporate service. Weak and reused passwords are easy targets for cyber criminals, who leverage automated tools to crack them and gain unauthorized access to sensitive information. Multi-factor authentication (MFA) adds an extra layer of security by requiring users to provide additional verification beyond just a password. While small businesses may perceive MFA as complex or unnecessary, it is a critical security measure that can protect against various cyber threats, such as password theft and unauthorized account access.

The report further revealed that small business owners should encourage employees to change their passwords periodically and enforce password expiration policies to prevent the reuse of old passwords. Employee awareness also is crucial for effective password protection and overall online safety within small businesses.

Hafeez Rehman, Technical group manager at Kaspersky stated that even the smallest businesses face significant cybersecurity risks. Therefore, it’s important for them to prioritize security measures and employ specialized cybersecurity products to safeguard their operations and customer data.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024