Malware, Phishing

SMBs victims of phishing attacks 5x more than ransomware

Despite a glut of research into new ransomware variants, low-tech threats like phishing attacks and viruses pose a more prevalent threat to small businesses than ransomware, according to a recent survey of SMB owners.

Thirty-seven percent of small businesses that experienced a cyberattack were victims of malicious viruses, 20 percent experienced phishing attacks, and 15 percent experienced Trojan horses, executives surveyed by Harris Poll said in the Nationwide Small Business Indicator study. Only four percent of business owners who suffered an attack were affected by ransomware.

The report surveyed owners of U.S. businesses with less than 300 employees. Fifty-four percent of those surveyed were affected by a cyberattack, although only 78 percent of the participants said they do not have a cyberattack response plan.

Sixty percent of the business owners who experienced a cyberattack said it took more than a month to recover.

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