Majority of Irish companies are not minimising risk of cyber attacks, according to new survey
The poll, taken among 100 'decision-makers' in Irish companies by the insurance and risk management firm Gallagher, also found that just four in 10 run system vulnerability scans or regular updates of software and that more than half (51pc) do not run regular automated data back-ups. Cumulatively, this opens the door to cyber criminals, Gallagher claims.
Meanwhile, only four in 10 Irish firms have given their staff cybersecurity training and less than half use multi-factor authentication for applications utilising remote access.
Despite the gaps, 92pc of Irish businesses believe they are 'adequately' protected against cyber attacks, a claim that exposes a 'disconnect between perception and reality', according to the insurance firm.
'Research published by Gallagher earlier this summer found that four in 10 Irish businesses suffered at least one cyber attack in the last five years, and of those businesses, 88pc suffered a financial loss and commercial disruption,' said Laura Vickers, managing director of commercial lines at Gallagher in Ireland.
'It is important that Irish businesses are not complacent about the threats out there and that they don't overestimate their cyber resilience or underestimate the potential impact of a cyber attack. Our research suggests that there is a mismatch between how well protected businesses in Ireland believe they are against cyber attacks and the steps they have taken to manage such threats.'
The survey also found a big gap between British and Irish firms, with UK businesses (71pc) more inclined than their Irish counterparts (43pc) to run regular software updates and to train all staff on cybersecurity (57pc versus 39pc).
However, 94pc of Irish businesses have a dedicated cyber insurance policy compared to 79pc of UK businesses, the poll found. The businesses that feel least protected against cyber attacks are those in the professional services (75pc) compared to healthcare (83pc), IT (83pc) and financial services (89pc).
The businesses that feel most protected against cyber attacks are those in agriculture, business services, construction, hospitality and leisure, legal services, marketing/PR, manufacturing, retail and utilities, with 100pc of business decision-makers in these sectors saying they feel sheltered against such threats.
Munster-based businesses were the most likely to feel protected against cyber attacks with every one of the organisations located in the province surveyed indicating this to be the case. Ulster-based businesses were the second most likely to feel protected (94pc) followed by Dublin-based firms (92pc), followed by those in Leinster (90pc) and Connacht (89pc)
'Regularly updating software is a very basic step but it is crucial for cybersecurity, as updates often include security patches that address vulnerabilities and this in turn could potentially prevent cyber attacks and data breaches. Yet our survey shows that only 43pc of Irish businesses do this,' said Ms Vickers.
'Automatic data back-up is another crucial cybersecurity measure, as it helps protect against data loss from various incidents such as ransomware attacks, hardware failures, and accidental deletions. Automated back-ups are considered more reliable and less error-prone than manual back-ups. Yet only half of Irish businesses run regular automated data back-ups.'
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