There’s plenty of talk about the risks of data breaches and ransomeware attacks right now, but do you know the difference… and which should you be most afraid of? Essentially, ransomware attacks lock your programs or data files through encryption so you and your customers are unable to access them, most probably bringing your business to a rapid halt. Typically, your data won’t be exposed. Data breaches, on the other hand, expose data belonging to you, your company or held by your company, which can put the security / confidentiality of your stakeholders, clients, suppliers, employees, investors as well as the company itself, at risk. Unfortunately, both data breaches and ransomeware attacks are on the rise, particularly in the healthcare and finance industries. In fact ransomeware is now a multi-billion-dollar industry with attacks occurring almost every 11 seconds and downtime from attacks on average, lasting about 9.6 days. Additionally, according to the latest notifiable data breaches report, released on 21 February 2022, 464 notifications were received by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) between July and December 2021, up from 446 in the first half of the year. Health service providers topped the list of industry sectors with 83 notifications, followed by finance (56), legal, accounting and management (51) and personal services (36). Education and insurance companies were also up there, with 32 notifications each. Can your business afford to be affected by a ransomeware attack or breach? A multi-layered approach is essential to help prevent data breaches and ransomeware attacks. This requires you to: Regularly backup your system, Segment your network, Regularly assess the security of your network (consider an external provider), Ensure your employees are trained and cognisant of the need to follow data security procedures, and Take control of password security. Stretched for Time to Manage Security? At the Ayers Group we can free you up to focus on essentials like data security, by taking care of all the admin and migration processes associated with engaging and managing staff and contractors – all from one easy platform that integrates with your existing software. Contact an expert from The Ayers Group today.