The huge economic risk posed by cybercrime has prompted an industry expert to pen a jargon-free cyber security guide to help leaders understand the growing problem. Launched on 28 March by the Hon Dan Tehan MP, Australia’s Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Cyber Security, in the presence of leading Australian cybersecurity experts from industry and government, the book explains the complex threat in straight-forward terms.
Author Craig McDonald, CEO and founder of Australian cybersecurity pioneer MailGuard, wrote the guide with the aim of empowering time-poor, non-tech executives in under an hour.
Cybercrime is a rapidly-growing industry. Last year, 594 million people were victims of online crime. It is now the number one economic crime in Australia, according to PwC, having been deemed “statistically insignificant” just six years ago.
It’s alarmingly easy for cybercriminals to get a foot in the door, with 91 per cent of cyber attacks arriving via email, usually via phishing. Every day, 205 billion emails are sent around the world – and everyone with an email address is a potential target. It means sorting the legitimate senders from criminal impersonators is growing increasingly difficult.
McDonald says he wrote Surviving the Rise of Cybercrime to help executives navigate an ever-changing threat landscape.
“Every day, I talk to successful business leaders who are charged with the responsibility of steering their organisations to success. To many, cybersecurity is new and unfamiliar territory,” McDonald said. “In cybersecurity, the human factor is the greatest vulnerability for any organisation, and a large part of the challenge is generating awareness and educating those who are in harm’s way. This is particularly the case with executives who are time-poor and often feel that there’s too much to consider. Some executives take the view that it’s somebody else’s problem – most commonly a member of their IT team. In today’s climate such attitudes are outdated and plain dangerous.”
The cost of cybercrime
Cyber crime costs the Australian economy between $1 billion and $17 billion annually, or roughly one per cent of GDP. The average attack costs SMBs $276,000.
Australian Government departments and agencies are not immune, with international cyber attacks reportedly targeting Austrade, the Defence Science Technology Group and the Bureau of Meteorology.
The Australian Cyber Security Centre says between January 2015 and June 2016 the Australian Signals Directorate responded to 1095 cyber security incidents against government systems. The Prime Minister’s cyber security adviser, Alastair MacGibbon, who will attend the book launch, has stated that the Australian Government is “attacked on a daily basis.”
Surviving the Rise of Cybercrime covers:
- identifying threats to a business
- why cyber criminals target particular businesses and staff
- why IT teams struggle to prevent these rising threats
- the role leaders and executives need to play in cyber security
- how to educate managers and teams as the frontline of your company’s cyber defence.
For a copy of the ebook version of Surviving the Rise of Cybercrime, please visit: http://www.mailguard.com.au/survivingcybercrime
Inside Small Business