Westpac has today released its free Cyber Response Playbook to help combat the rise in cyberattacks. According to recent data, over half (49%) of Australian small and medium-sized enterprises have been the victim of a cyberattack in the past year.
Nearly one-fifth (17%) of SME organisations had to stop operations due to a cyber assault, one-fourth (25%) experienced data loss, and almost one-tenth (8%) had to pay a ransom to stop the attack.
Malware attacks and phishing were determined to be the two most frequent types of cyberattacks.
“Our research shows that preparing for and mitigating cyber attacks is a key priority for business owners,” said Richard Johnson, Westpac’s Group Chief Information Security Officer.
Related read: Cybersecurity Skills Shortage in Australia – Need 7,000 Professionals by 2024
“Almost 90 per cent of small business owners in Australia admit they could do more to educate themselves about cyber attacks, which is why we are launching this playbook.
“In the 2020-21 financial year, cyber attacks accounted for $33 billion in self-reported losses nationwide. Unfortunately, we are seeing a further rise in these attacks,” he said.
Westpac’s Cyber Response Playbook provides businesses with an outline of a five-step plan to manage a cyber attack.
This includes tools such as tips to gather key contacts, helping them understand how to detect and contain a threat, before resetting and restoring their business online.
