October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month in the U.S.
While it might seem like a corporate version of a Hallmark holiday, it’s actually a great reminder to revisit your own security measures.
Cybersecurity has never been more important
Big hacks have hit the headlines recently, like the attack on MGM Resorts International, in which bad actors used the company’s own contact center system against them.
According to IBM, data breaches cost companies an average of $4.45 million, every time they happen. That’s a global average. The number is even higher for U.S. companies, and it’s up 15% over just three years. The healthcare sector suffers the highest average cost at $11 million per breach, but we’ve seen examples like CommonSpirit health which reported losses over $160 million for a 2022 attack. That’s not to mention the 7.5% average dip in stock value that follows each attack.
And not only are breaches expensive, they’re increasingly common. Organizations face an average of 1,258 attacks per week.
The state of cybersecurity continues to evolve
Enterprises are responding by elevating the importance of security ownership to the C-level and creating more Chief Information Security Officer roles. And more providers are rolling out tools that go far beyond knowledge-based authentication questions (street address, pet’s name) to truly keep communication secure.
Examples include Call Verification, that uses a scoring system to help stop fraudulent calls before they even get to your agents, and integrations from Pindrop that let you use the latest voice authentication technology to make sure your callers are who they say they are.
The good news: a dedicated effort around cybersecurity can make a real difference, reducing the number of breaches by nearly 40% and helping stock prices recover more quickly, according to Harvard Business Review.
