It’s a hot topic these days and it's not hard to see why.

• Cyber incidents (e.g. cyber crime, related IT failure and data breaches) is the #1 global business risk in 2022.
• According to PwC, more than a quarter of organizations globally expect double-digit growth in cyber budgets in 2022
• The average total cost of a data breach for Canadian companies was $6.75 million per incident on average, a 20% increase over 2020 and an all-time high for Canada, according to IBM.
  

Since the beginning of the pandemic, many organizations have accelerated their digital transformation and moved (at least partially) to a remote workforce. The upside has been operating efficiencies. However, the perimeters of Canada’s organizations have changed drastically, thereby increasing risk profiles.

Cyber security is a serious issue for small businesses, as they often do not have the budget to invest in cybersecurity measures. Regardless of size, every business should take steps to protect themselves against cyber-attacks.

It's important to know how to identify the potential risks your business might face and be aware of what you can do to minimize the risks.

A simple way to start improving cyber security

We speak with countless business owners, juggling sales to operations to managing people.

Cyber security is an area that is sometimes neglected. However, it is becoming a pressing issue.

That's why we’ve developed two checklists for SMEs to help you examine your organization’s cyber security practices. One for business owners, and another one for IT leaders.

These checklists were compiled from best practices and guidance from the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security.