Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) across the UK are putting themselves at risk by failing to take their cyber security seriously, according to new research.
A study carried out by Barclaycard found that just one in five SMEs consider cyber security a ‘top business priority’, despite the fact that 74 per cent of UK firms found themselves facing at least one security breach during 2015, according to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
The Government has warned that the average cyber-attack can potentially cost a business anywhere between £75,000 and £311,000.
The National Audit Office (NAO) has added that cyber-attacks could become more common following HMRC’s shift to an all-digital tax system.
Making Tax Digital (MTD) proposals came under fire last week, after an NAO report found that much more still needs to be done by HMRC ‘to use data and technology to reduce fraud and error’.
The NAO said that HMRC is facing a great challenge in building “public trust that the new digital systems are easy to use and secure”, in order to protect both itself and SMEs from potential data loss and IT crime as the new systems are brought online.
Their report added that HMRC “must also demonstrate to taxpayers that its controls to verify each taxpayer’s identity and protect the confidentiality of data are working effectively.”