Midsize firms face growing hack attacks

More midsize companies in the United States are skimping on security just at a time when they are being attacked in greater numbers by cybercriminals, according to a new McAfee report released last week. McAfee found the same kind of trends in countries around the globe. Half of the 900 midsized companies surveyed with 51-1,000 employees experienced an increase in security breaches in the last year, the research firm said.

In the United States, 63 percent of the companies surveyed have seen increases in security threats at a time when the recession has caused most of these companies to freeze their IT security budgets. More than 70 percent of midsize U.S. businesses also say a serious data breach could put them out of business.

The trends couldn't be more ominous. Midsize companies may be underestimating their risk, according to McAfee. More than 90 percent of companies with less than 500 employees don't think they face the same threats as larger companies do.

So what's a company to do? Save on IT security protections and be at risk or blow it's budget in order to protect itself? Most experts will tell you that it's far better to be safe than risk the aftermath of a cybersecurity attack, not to mention its costs and damage to your system and your reputation among your customers.

"Our research shows that organizations that put more effort on preventing attacks can end up spending less than a third as much on those that allow themselves to be at risk," advices Darrell Rodenbaugh, senior vice president of global midmarket at McAfee.

For more on midsize firms and data breaches:
- see this CNET.com article

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