It’s costing businesses, especially those based online, big bucks to deal with IT security problems. According to a research report by the Aberdeen Group, businesses are losing profits due to Internet-based business disruptions because of problems with worms, viruses, spyware, and other security-related issues. These culprits are costing big companies almost $2 million per incident, or a median amount of .067% of the businesses’ yearly revenue.

According to Aberdeen’s survey, 75% of firms are doing more of their core business work online, including customer service, product distribution and fulfillment. Given the fact that you are living online, using the internet for all of your business functions, business disruptions from Internet security events are leaving all of these areas susceptible to harm.

1. Revenue losses, not including recovery costs, are pushing businesses to concentrate on preventing a security outbreaks, rather than deal with it when it happens. IT security breaches not only hurt your company’s profits, but also employees’ productivity, since the work cycle is disturbed and extra energy needs to be devoted to the security issue.
2. Despite the primary concern with revenue, recovery costs are no minor issue either. The Sasser worm, which infected millions of computers in 2004, cost more than $4 billion to recover from. This includes costs associated with clean-up, lost revenue, labor, hardware, and software. That’s a lot of cash for a little worm.
3. The theft of intellectual property and customer information is another huge cost of security problems. You can always make more money, but once your secret is out, it’s out for good. Also, by losing, or worse, disclosing, sensitive customer information, you risk compromising your credibility in the marketplace. Customers may lose confidence in you, and your company will likely suffer negative publicity. Loss of confidence equals loss of customers.
4. Security breaches may also give a hacker access to your accounting data, and numbers might even be changed without you realizing it. Hackers may also use the information they steal to impersonate your company, or your customers. This could lead to legal action against you, and no one wants to deal with a hefty lawsuit.
5. Aside from all of the above, your daily business functions will be disrupted, or even come to a halt, until the issue is resolved. The quality of your services will go down during that period, and it gives an opening for your competitors to swoop in like the vultures they are, and snatch your customers right from under you.

For all of these reasons, comprehensive IT security is indispensable to any business who wishes to avoid any snags, or huge stumbling blocks, not only in their daily routine, but in their long-term quest for success.