Small businesses are taking major risks when it comes to security, according to a joint survey by anti-virus vendor McAfee and business products company Office Depot.
More than 1,000 SMBs took part in Office Depot's Small Business Index survey, which found that 14% of 'small and midsized' businesses (SMBs) throw caution to the wind by implementing no security measures.
Just one fifth of respondents revealed they use data protection, and around a half use Internet security. 45% of SMBs said that they do not secure company data on employees' personal devices.
The survey also revealed relaxed attitudes around mobile security, with fewer than one in 10 (9%) choosing to protect smartphones and tablets brought into the workplace.
Over confident
The lapse security practices conflict with SMBs' confidence levels. According to the survey, two thirds feel confident that their data and devices are secure and safe from hackers, while 77% said they had never been hacked.
A survey by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) conducted in May revealed that three in 10 of 2,667 UK-based small businesses had fallen victim to attacks in the prior 12 months, resulting in an average annual cost of just below £4,000 (around $6,417, or AU$6750).
- When it comes to security, are SMBs better off heading to the cloud?
