Inoculation against this viral infection is not in health-care hands. It is in the hands of corporate IT departments and company vigilance, workforce education and operational execution. It is cybercrime, and it is one of the biggest 21st century threats to business operations.
March being fraud prevention month in Canada, companies at every level need to evaluate their preparedness to fend off ransomware and other cyberattacks.
Ransomware targeting public institutions and major international companies exploded in 2020 as digital industrial revolution disruption coupled with global pandemic workplace dislocation exponentially increased cybercrime opportunities.
The forecast for 2021 is for more attacks on a wider range of targets. Ransomware is now a multimillion-dollar enterprise. Its high-profile victims have ranged from ocean cargo carriers and telecoms to appliance manufacturers and professional sports teams.
More sophisticated cybercrime organizations and easier access to company data created by workplace disruption and the rush to remote working arrangements have opened more digital doors for fraudsters.
BDO Canada ranks cybercrime atop its latest list of 2021’s biggest fraud risks. It notes that more than 80% of the 61,000 small and mid-sized businesses in Canada that reported being hit by cybercrime since March 2020 said the attacks came through email and phishing attempts.
Fifty per cent of those businesses were the targets of malicious software. The accounting and assurance advisory firm notes that companies most at risk have 20 employees or more, allow employees to work remotely and are in the manufacturing, wholesale trade, business services and administration management sectors.
Reducing cybercrime threats to your company starts with securing its IT infrastructure and educating its management and staff as to the dangers those threats pose to their companies and their livelihoods. Add those to a baseline of common sense and vigilance and you will have established a good first line of defence against cybercrime. .
