In the 21st Century business large and small must consider cybersecurity. The smaller businesses face the largest knowledge and barrier to entry issues while the large businesses represent a larger attack surface and increased complexity. It is fair to say that regardless of the size of the business the risk remains the same. I successful cybersecurity event can lead to irreparable harm and ultimately the discontinuation of the business. Our societies strength lies within our businesses and economy. Businesses large and small must strike a balance between cost and benefit and find a suitable mitigation and resolution for the modern cyber threats.
The costs of developing a cybersecurity program are measured in resources. At maturation those costs are typically overhead expenses and ultimately in one form or another passed along to customers and consumers. Therefor the pinnacle manifestation of the cost to develop a cybersecurity program for a business is higher cost of goods and services. Price alone is the most influential single component of consumer choice. With that in mind the contributors to that cost are the acquisition of the knowledge, physical and virtual tools and products, and time. Depending on the size of the business these three components will change in percentage of the total cost. For a small business the physical and virtual components could be the costliest while for a large business it is likely that time will likely be the largest cost.
The benefits to having struck that manageable balance will be ultimately a better product. Whether producing a physical good or delivering a professional service not presenting a soft target for cyber criminals while maintain or even increase the value of your offering. Securing your businesses data and property will allow for autonomy to expend maximum resources towards delivery of your product. The exploits and cost of a successful cyber-attack may be reputational or monetary. Customers may have the ability to act civilly if industry standards were not applied. The ultimate cost of a cyber incident will detract and deter from your customer base and growth.