The number of cyberattacks against Swedish authorities, municipalities and socially critical operations has increased sharply recently. This constitutes a significant threat that must always be taken seriously, but during the summer, the risks increase many times over.
The reason that the risks of a cyber crisis increase so much during the summer can be summed up in two points:
- Vacation times lead to irregular and distance-based work, which can cause a decrease in focus and overlook important information. Staff may work from a private or borrowed computer or connect to an insecure network somewhere they shouldn’t.
This increases the risk of accidentally clicking on dangerous links or leaving information on an unprotected computer.
2. In the case of cyber-related incidents, there is a high risk of acting more slowly. Fewer people are in the office, the problem cannot be detected as quickly, and you don’t want to disturb employees on vacation. Therefore, the consequences of a cyber crisis are much more significant and the restoration work can be delayed by several weeks.
When an event’s probability and the consequences increase, the risks increase exponentially.
A cyber-crisis during the summer has enormous consequences not only in the short term with dissatisfied customers, reduced revenues, lost trust and interrupted vacations. But also, in the long term, with a significantly increased workload for all parts of the business when you need to restore confidence both internally and externally at the same time that many employees have been forced to work during the holidays.
What measures should be taken to reduce the risks drastically?
To drastically reduce the risks of a cyber crisis during the summer, you can take some simple, quick and cost-effective measures.
1. Inform and train staff about the risks of cybercrime and cybercrimes consequences.
2. Ensure good relationships and clear contact lines with suppliers, even during the summer.
3. Have a clear plan for how you handle a cyber crisis during periods of lower staffing in the office
4. Practice. Review the above and ensure everyone has the skills and tools they need to handle an incident before it becomes a crisis.
IT security is not an IT issue; it is a management issue because, without IT, all businesses in today’s society come to a standstill. Therefore, it is an absolute must that the management of the company has the skills and tools it needs to handle a cyber crisis.
The Murphy Way: A long pleasant, and uneventful holiday
Murphy Solution are expert in crises in general and cyber-crises in particular; we have many years of experience in preparing, training, practising and managing problems.
To help businesses before the summer, we have developed a 2-hour workshop where, through both training and practice, we help you reduce the risk of a cyber-crisis occurring.
At the same time, we ensure that you have the tools you need to drastically reduce the consequences of a cyber crisis should the worst thing happen.
Give your business the best possible conditions for a long, pleasant and uneventful holiday.
Or call us at +46 72 999 70 10