How would you feel if you turned on your computer at work in the morning only to see a strange message and find that all your files were inaccessible? I often hear stories from small business owners who have experienced this.

While ransomware attacks seem like something that only happens to large corporations, the data tells a different story.

According to Verizon's 2025 data breach investigation report, 88 percent of the incidents experienced by small businesses with fewer employees were related to ransomware. In contrast, the rate for large corporations was only 39 percent.

The reason small companies are particularly targeted is simple.

They often cannot afford to have dedicated security personnel, and basic procedures like software updates and backups tend to be neglected. From the attackers' perspective, small businesses are much easier targets than large corporations.

In fact, a study found that 47 percent of companies with fewer than 50 employees have no budget allocated for cybersecurity at all. It's not so much a lack of funds, but rather that it gets pushed down the priority list.

There's one point worth noting here.

The statistic that 60 percent of small businesses that suffer a cyber attack close within six months is widely cited, but the original source of this number is unclear.

The National Cyber Security Alliance, which was initially credited with this statistic, officially stated in 2022 that it was not their data and requested that it not be cited anymore.

However, this does not mean the risks are exaggerated.

IBM's analysis of companies with fewer than 500 employees shows that the average cost per incident is around $3.31 million. For a small business, this amount could potentially jeopardize the entire company.

When an incident occurs, it's not just data that is lost. If it's a retail store, the point-of-sale system goes down, and in an office, order forms and accounting programs become inaccessible, paralyzing operations for days.

Ransomware is not the only issue.

According to a report from the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center released in 2024, the amount lost due to email scams impersonating business owners or clients reached $2.77 billion in one year, with 21,442 reported cases.

The total cost of cybercrime was $16.6 billion, a 33 percent increase from the previous year. A common tactic is to impersonate a client's representative and request a change in bank account details, leading to situations where a careless click can wipe out weeks of revenue.

It's similar to neglecting regular oil changes in a car until the engine fails completely. The structure is the same: putting off small maintenance tasks can lead to a significant financial hit all at once.

Fortunately, there are ways to start without spending a lot of money.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, commonly known as CISA, offers free vulnerability assessments for small businesses.

By simply applying, they will check for any weaknesses in your company's network, and organizations that regularly use this service have seen their exposure risk reduced by about 40 percent within a year.

Employee training can also be more effective than expected.

A study found that without training, one in four employees clicks on a fake phishing email, but with regular training, this rate drops significantly after a year.

There's no need to establish a large security team.

Implementing two-factor authentication for all employee accounts and backing up important data both to the cloud and to separate storage devices can prevent many attacks. It's also important to apply software updates immediately when notifications appear.

Considering cyber insurance is also worth it.

While the premium may seem expensive, it is much cheaper compared to the recovery costs incurred after an incident. Personally, I think it's more regrettable to risk the entire company over a few hundred dollars in savings.