Data breaches take a big toll on business – in both time and money. A report from IBM and the Ponemon Institute states that in 2020, the average cost of a data breach in the United States was $8.64 million.1 The most common and most expensive breaches come from malicious cyberattacks (52 percent) that compromise both your business’s credentials and your customers’ private information. 

Much of the problem has to do with how long it can take to detect and contain a breach event, with the average being 280 days. Time is of the essence, as the report points out that an average of $1 million is saved if a business is able to keep that number of days below 200.    

But as the infographic below from Deloitte suggests,2 the impact of a cyberattack that leads to a data breach can go beyond immediate financial costs to having more far-reaching consequences. For example, your business’s very reputation can be at stake, and it’s hard to put a price on your customers’ loss of trust.

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We help mitigate the impact on your business
“As a small to medium-size business, you may not suffer the huge losses that large corporations can – but it could be even worse,” said Chris Geron, vice president, Elavon Client Security. “Without the resources of big business, the loss of even a few thousand dollars could mean financial ruin.”

However, as the IBM report points out, security automation solutions show the greatest potential for cutting the costs of data breaches. And if you add incident response preparedness, even further savings can be realized.

“Elavon not only offers data security solutions such as Safe-T and PCI DSS compliance validations tools but our team also proactively monitors and investigates risks to you and your customers’ payment data,” Geron added. “This expertise provides resources you need to thrive in today’s risky and complex environment.”  

1IBM Security: Cost of a Data Breach Report 2020
2
Beneath the surface of a cyberattack: A deeper look at business impacts

This article was originally published in Elavon’s Payment Smart newsletter. The Washington Hospitality Association’s payments processing system is backed by U.S. Bank/Elavon.