Survey: Half-million spent to recover from cyber attacks

The cost of a business' recover from a cyber attack is rising. That according to Kaspersky Lab which surveyed IT departments about recovery from an attack; according to the survey businesses are spending an average of $551,000 (enterprises).

by Kristina Knight

Nearly half of those surveyed say they've lost vital/sensitive information because of a cyber attack and nearly all (90%) reporting they've suffered from a cyber attack. Enterprises aren't the only businesses suffering - SMBs are also being targeted. They report an average $38,000 spent on recovery from attacks.

"Businesses have known for a long time that any cyberattack has its consequences, but the high costs associated with addressing a cyberattack after an incident occurs is quite alarming," said Chris Doggett, managing director of Kaspersky Lab North America. "These numbers should serve as a wakeup call for both large and small businesses. IT security needs to become a more common priority for organizations and it is our hope that these numbers will motivate businesses to take the necessary steps to implement effective cybersecurity technology and strategies to prevent having to pay an enormous cybersecurity bill."

Some interesting takeaways from the report include:

• Malware attacks are the most common with 24% reporting these attacks
• 48% say they've lost sensitive information as the result of an attack
• 44% say their reputation has been damaged
• 44% have not implemented malware solutions to fight off attacks