Businesses lose over £200bn to cyber attacks a year globally, reveals study

Cyber attacks have cost businesses across the world more than £200 billion over the past year, according to new research from Grant Thornton International Ltd.

The Grant Thornton International Business Report (IBR) surveyed 2,500 business leaders in 35 countries and found that in excess of one in every six businesses fell victim to a cyber attack in the past 12 months.

Top threat

Cyber security has been classified as one of the four top threats to the UK by the government, ranking it as dangerous to the nation as natural disasters, international terrorism and military invasion.

The IBR found that 15% of businesses who took part in the survey had been subject to cyber attack, with 19% of EU based companies and 18% in North America coming in at over the average.

The results reveal that an average attack costs a business 1.2% of its revenues, but only 52% of the companies that took part in the survey reported that they currently had a cyber security strategy in place.

Significant danger

Head of cyber security and resilience at Grant Thornton UK LLP Manu Sharma commented: “Cyber attacks are an increasingly significant danger for business. Not just the costs in terms of financial penalties, but serious reputational damage and loss of customers and business can be inflicted if attacks undermine customer confidence. Despite this, some firms still lack a strategy to deal with cyber threat or even understand the risks to their organisation."