UK SMEs underestimate the cyber threat they at present face

GlobalData’s 2021–23 UK SME Insurance coverage Surveys point out that lower than half of UK SMEs, of all sizes, imagine that the cyber threat dealing with their enterprise has elevated for the reason that begin of the Covid-19 pandemic. In its Threat Barometer 2024 report, Allianz identifies cyber incidents as crucial enterprise threat in 2024. Conveying cyber threat to purchasers continues to realize significance as geopolitical tensions and cybercriminal sophistication develop.

As per our 2021–23 UK SME Insurance coverage Surveys, the cyber threat perceived to be dealing with a enterprise is affected by the dimensions of the corporate. Bigger SMEs are significantly extra conscious of the rising cyber threat they face than sole merchants. For sole merchants, the perceived threat has grown steadily since 2021, with a 7.4 percentage-point enhance within the share of sole merchants saying that their cyber dangers have elevated for the reason that pandemic. For microenterprises and small companies, the determine is comparatively unchanged 12 months on 12 months. Simply over 1 / 4 of microenterprises and simply over a 3rd of small corporations imagine the cyber threat they face has elevated for the reason that begin of the pandemic. Medium corporations are almost certainly to understand that their cyber threat has elevated, with a big enhance in 2022 presumably linked to cyberattacks related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Nonetheless, lower than 50% of medium-sized corporations imagine their cyber threat has elevated since 2019, suggesting that extra might be finished to tell companies extra totally of cyber dangers within the present age.

Allianz’s Threat Barometer 2024 finds that 36% of corporations rank cyber threat as their prime concern in 2024. The highest considerations surrounding cyber threat are knowledge breaches, cyber incidents involving essential infrastructure, and ransomware assaults. The emergence of generative AI is a key problem for cybersecurity suppliers and insurers, enabling dangerous actors to provide extra compelling threats in addition to generate new strains of viruses at larger speeds. The emergence of extremely plausible deepfakes can also be turning into a key problem within the area.

Cyber threat is definitely some of the urgent for companies and insurers in 2024. GlobalData’s 2024 UK SME Insurance coverage Survey studies that 54.4% of UK SMEs are involved, to some extent, about cyber threat. Brokers and insurers should work to extend this determine because the pattern of rising sophistication, velocity, and flexibility of cybercriminals (state-sponsored or in any other case) appears set to proceed, empowered by technological progress.