Singapore – The latest findings from cybersecurity firm ExtraHop revealed that data breaches cost organisations an average of US$677m, significantly exceeding figures from previously reported industry estimates.
Results showed that within a month of a data breach, affected organisations experienced an average 7% decline in stock prices, demonstrating the financial impact on both the company and its shareholders.
In particular, one breach detailed in the report is expected to cost the affected organisation an estimated US$2.8b, encompassing lost revenue, business disruption, incident response, and remediation efforts. This comes after a threat actor conducted a ransomware attack affecting over 100 million customers by gaining unauthorised access to its systems.
The report further recorded unauthorised access among the highlights of the breaches, with almost half of the incidents indicating a growing need for robust network visibility to detect and respond to suspicious behaviours quickly.
Commenting about the findings, Raja Mukerji, co-founder and chief scientist at ExtraHop, said, “Data breaches have profound impacts that are wildly underestimated by organisations until they find themselves in the middle of one. It’s important for business leaders to recognise that no organisation is immune to cyberattacks or the potential financial fallout that comes with them—nor can they be too prepared.”
“Bad actors have experienced great success to date using the most basic tactics and techniques, highlighting a great need for organisations to re-evaluate their cyber risk and resilience postures,” added Mukerji.
In this report, the firm expanded its traditional analysis, incorporating SEC filings, stock performance, and quarterly earnings, to assist business leaders in understanding the full impact of a data breach.
