News articles have continued to highlight the impact Brexit could have on UK businesses in 2020. With everything from visas to regulations and import taxes, businesses face a lot of uncertainty in the coming years.
However, despite Brexit continuing as a hot topic in business media, surveys have found that it is not the most pressing issue on business leaders’ agendas. Instead, data protection topped the list.
The first half of 2019 saw data breaches leave 4.1 billion records across the world exposed, and they are continuing to occur on an almost weekly basis in the UK. The rapid sophistication of cyber attacks is leaving an increasing number of UK’s businesses vulnerable to these potentially devastating breaches.
80% of CEOs concerned about cyber threat
PricewaterhouseCoopers conducted a recent survey to gauge the key areas of CEO uncertainty and how they are taking action to address them. The findings found that eight out of ten CEOs are concerned about the threats posed by a cyber attack.
This concern emerges among a growing abundance of news stories reporting enormous data and security breaches at top companies and organisations, which end up costing them hundreds of thousands in compensation.
One of the most publicised cases of 2019 was the British Airways breach in which the details of about 500,000 customers were stolen by hackers. As a result, BA was charged a fine of £183 million.
This is a corporate example, but even small businesses are at risk of fines for violating GDPR data protection laws. If you’re wondering if you’re GDPR compliant, CyberSmart offers a simple, non-technical path to GDPR certification.
The public wants to know businesses are protecting their data
Media coverage and market research make it clear that cyber attacks are only going to increase in frequency in 2020, both in the UK and the rest of the world. But this is not just an issue for CEOs.
The media attention garnered by cyber attack stories have made data regulations and privacy a key issue amongst the general public, who place an increasing premium on companies that take protection of their data seriously.
It’s more important than ever to show that businesses showcase their cyber security certifications and GDPR compliance.
Pressure from consumers has been further motivation for CEOs to consider data privacy and compliance with data regulations as two of their top issues. 57% of respondents to PwC’s report cited public fears over security as a key factor.
Cyber security starts at the foundation
However, 2020 is expected to see more CEOs focusing on the configuration of their business in order to meet the requirements of cyber resilience. In the increasingly digital landscape of the future, cyber security will no longer be an added feature for organisations to incorporate as an afterthought, but rather a critical feature to be in-built into a business’ infrastructure.
As cyber attacks continue to pose a significant threat to UK businesses in 2020, it has never been more important for companies to ensure they are compliant with data protection laws and agreements.
CyberSmart several ways that even small businesses can take precautions against cyber threats. Our Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus certification offers simplify the process of keeping businesses up to date with UK laws while CyberSmart Active Protect secures your company devices around the clock.
In addition, we offer products for IASME GDPR compliance enabling you and your company to meet protection standards and have peace of mind in your service.
