Why Do Hackers Target Small Businesses?

Unlike bigger companies, small businesses often do not have the funds to invest in sophisticated cybersecurity systems or hire a dedicated team of security professionals. With these limited resources, many small businesses often lack the capability to consistently monitor their networks to identify and quickly neutralize threats.

“Barring targeted attacks, most attackers are looking for the path of least resistance. And a lot of the time, because smaller and mid-sized companies do not have the security and technology budgets that some of the bigger guys do, they’re often the better target because they’re a little bit more vulnerable from the outside looking in,” GraVoc’s President, Nate Gravel, explained in a Gray, Gray & Gray podcast episode.

In many cases, hackers may employ the same advanced techniques against small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that they use to target bigger businesses. Smaller businesses with limited security infrastructure will find it especially challenging to defend against these advanced attacks.

Many small businesses often harbor a false sense of security – a belief that they’re too small to be noticed or targeted by a hacker. This, unfortunately, is not true. While attacks against small businesses may not make the headlines, they are frequently a target for hackers. And, these attacks against small businesses are often more successful because of a lack of preparedness.

Even if a business is small, it still has a fairly big volume of valuable data, including financial information and personal data from customers or employees. Depending on the industry, some small businesses may even store more sensitive information. If a hacker can crack a small business’ security system, they can steal this valuable data and enjoy a good payday.

In many cases, SMBs might serve as the backdoor to the bigger clients or partners they work with. If a small business is a partner, supplier, or vendor to a larger enterprise, for instance, a hacker may try to use the SMB as an entry point to launch a wider attack against the more high-value target.

Often, small businesses may not have enough knowledge about new and existing cyber threats and how to combat them. A lack of employee security awareness training may also leave the business more vulnerable to social engineering attacks like phishing that rely on human error.

In a malware attack, hackers use malicious software developed to steal data or disrupt systems. Ransomware is a popular form of malware attack that locks users out of systems, blocking access to mission-critical data and assets until a ransom is paid.

Malware and ransomware attacks can bring operations to a halt and cause a lot of financial and reputational damage to small businesses.

Phishing is an increasingly common social engineering tactic where hackers send out fraudulent communication designed to deceive the target into sharing sensitive data. Statistics show that on average, an employee of a small business with less than 100 employees will experience 350% more social engineering attacks than an employee of a larger enterprise.

If a phishing attack is successful, the hacker can gain access to confidential customer data or financial accounts. This could lead to fraudulent transactions, data breaches, or even legal consequences if customer data is exposed.

Check out our blog post to learn more about the top red flags of phishing. You can also learn more about the common types of social engineering attacks here.

Along with social engineering and malware, we have found that credential stuffing and brute force attacks are also a threat to small businesses.

Credential stuffing involves attackers using stolen username and password combinations, often from previous data breaches, to gain unauthorized access to a business’ accounts. Like credential stuffing, in a brute force attack, hackers systematically try different password combinations until they find the correct one.

Small businesses that don’t have proper password management and multi-factor authentication (MFA) policies risk becoming a victim of such attacks.

Conducting regular risk assessments is a great way to understand your risk exposure, identify mission-critical systems, and evaluate the preparedness of your team to detect and respond to a threat. These assessments provide a solid foundation to enhance your security posture and better protect your business.

The success of many cyberattacks depends on human error. So, we often say that your employees are your first and a very important line of defense against hackers. Make sure your people are trained to identify the red flags of social engineering and other cyberattacks. Invest in regular security awareness training to educate your team on cybersecurity threats and best practices.

Proper password management, MFA policies, patch management, and regular software updates are some of the basic steps necessary to protect your IT infrastructure.

Regularly back up your data so you have a better chance of recovering mission-critical files and assets in the event of a cyberattack.

Having a well-designed business continuity/disaster recovery response plan is essential for protecting your organization from both operational disruptions and reputational damage in the event of major failures or disasters.

Often times, hackers are using more advanced techniques to bypass traditional security systems. Managed detection and response (MDR) technology provides an added layer of defense that is designed to identify this nuanced malicious activity and neutralize the threat at a rapid pace. Having an MDR allows small businesses with limited security resources to leverage advanced threat detection and response capabilities at a more affordable cost.