Hackers hit hard and fast: Is your company ready for 2016?

As the world increasingly moves online, cybersecurity will continue to play a large role in how businesses operate. A Forbes report found that the cybersecurity market is predicted to hit $170 billion by 2020. Organizations will obviously be putting their money where their mouth is when it comes to the security of their data, but will it be enough?

Hackers are a malicious bunch, but they aren’t stupid. They are always working to take what’s rightfully yours, and they’re often successful. Less-than-perfect cybersecurity systems are no match for today’s cybercriminal, and companies that don’t take security seriously in 2016 will be paying the price.

Many companies just aren’t prepared

The problem that many organizations face is that hackers are consistently refining their techniques, working daily to stay one step ahead of standard cybersecurity protocols. These attacks have gotten so sophisticated that cybercriminals are gaining access to networks faster than ever before.

According to the Data Breach Investigation Report put out by Verizon, around 84 percent of data breaches took only minutes for hackers to gain access to private information. The speed at which these criminals can get their hands on your company’s data is scary enough, but the truly frightening part of this report has to do with how long it takes to discover this kind of intrusion.

The study found that 66 percent of these breaches weren’t discovered by the organization until months after the original intrusion. That’s a very long time to have your company’s information completely open to hackers, and would allow these cybercriminals to get away with a lot of private data.

While the theft of sensitive information is certainly bad for business in and of itself, the thing organizations really have to worry about is their public image. Money comes and goes, but reputation is all a company really has. The Ponemon Institute found that a business’s client-facing reputation can be damaged by as much as 31 percent following a data breach.

Although it is kind of cruel to blame the victim of a cyberattack, this data makes sense from a consumer’s point of view. Purchasing products or services from a company often requires the exchange of personal information, and no one wants to do business with an organization that’s known for having been hacked.

What’s more, the Verizon report found that around 9 percent of breaches were discovered by a client rather than the company itself. Being known as the company that was hit with a cyberattack is bad, but that’s nothing compared with the reputation blowback of not even being able to discover the leak yourself.

Finding cybersecurity professionals is tough

After reading all of that, you might be thinking to yourself that it’s probably time to beef up your cybersecurity team. While that’s probably a good idea, the reality of the situation is that actually hiring these professionals is a lot easier said than done.

According to Peninsula Press’s analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers, there are around 209,000 unfilled cybersecurity positions in America right now. Due to the high level of training these professionals have to go through in order to work in the field, cybersecurity workers are few and far between.

This will make it incredibly difficult for you to find new members for your team. The pickings are really slim at the moment, and if you’re lucky enough to find someone with this kind of training you’re going to be paying quite a lot to hire them. Low supply equals high demand, and cybersecurity professionals know exactly what their skills are worth.

You might need some outside help

Asking for help can be hard, especially when you’re used to running an autonomous company. But considering the huge threat of a cyberattack against your company, now is no time to be proud. Hiring an outside company to help with things like malware removal and secure data management allows you to find the cybersecurity professionals you’re looking for without having to pay their massive salaries yourself.

Thankfully, ISG Technology makes acquiring these service easy and affordable. With everything from virus protection to intrusion prevention, ISG Technology can help keep your company safe as it moves into 2016.