Rising Cyber Attack Threats: Why Small and Medium-Sized Businesses Are Particularly Vulnerable

In an increasingly digitalized world, cyber attacks pose a growing threat to businesses of all sizes.

A common misconception is that smaller companies or municipalities are uninteresting to cybercriminals. However, reality tells a different story: According to a recent study by the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI), almost half of all online-generated traffic is caused by bots, with nearly 70 percent of these bots being classified as malicious in Germany.

These automated attacks, particularly through so-called ransomware, pose a serious threat. They target small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and municipalities en masse, which often face inadequate protection. Once such a bot discovers a security vulnerability, it makes no distinction whether the data is crucial or not – it encrypts it and demands ransom for its release.

Often, the focus in business cybersecurity is misplaced. Too frequently, companies rely on superficial security measures, comparable to surveillance cameras that only secure the external environment. What is needed, however, is a "panic room" for the most important data, making it inaccessible in case of an attack.

Even large companies and IT experts are not immune to these threats, as numerous headlines show. Guaranteeing absolute protection against cyber attacks is unrealistic. However, innovative software solutions like CHRONOS offer a way to secure the most important data and make it inaccessible in emergencies.

The challenge lies in setting the right priorities and investing in comprehensive security solutions that go beyond conventional approaches. Only then can SMEs and municipalities secure their digital infrastructure robustly against increasingly sophisticated internet threats.

CHRONOS offers decisive added value for companies' IT security. Through data isolation, archived data is stored in a secure environment separated from active processes, significantly reducing the attack surface. The solution also provides fine-granular access controls ensuring that only authorized persons can access archived data. Strong encryption makes the data unreadable even with physical access. Additionally, CHRONOS supports automated compliance by enabling regulation-compliant archiving that meets regulatory requirements and minimizes data protection risks. Cost efficiency is achieved through reduced data load, lowering operating costs and optimizing resources. Finally, CHRONOS optimizes backup processes, as less data needs to be secured, leading to faster backup and recovery times and increasing company resilience.

By implementing CHRONOS as part of their IT security strategy, companies can effectively protect their sensitive data and significantly reduce cyber attack risks.