Data security should be a top priority for UK businesses

With a record number of data breaches in the first quarter of 2019 exposing an estimated 4.53 billion records, it is becoming increasingly clear that cyber criminals are becoming more sophisticated when it comes to hacking into company data and stealing personal information. This information can then be used for various illegal activities, putting the identities and credit ratings of affected parties at risk.

The data breach stats show no organisation is safe from the reach of such criminals, with multinational organisations and large corporations such as the NHS, Twitter and various well-known UK retailers all impacted.

As well as these data breaches being a source of much embarrassment for the affected organisations, failure to protect customer data to the best of a firm’s abilities has resulted in record fines, an estimated cost of £2.95bn levied against businesses all over the globe in 2018.

This equates to roughly £113 per record, making data breaches a potentially business-threatening event that could cause smaller companies to go into liquidation.

For UK businesses unaware of the risk of such data breaches, Amvia is offering its support and pledges to help SMEs find the best quality data provider with fortress-safe security measures in place. These safeguards stop cyber criminals accessing personal records of both employees and customers.

Developed by Amvia for SMEs and international corporations alike, AmviaSearch performs a tailored search for the best data package providers. It substantially cuts down the time and effort needed to source a more secure provider, thus reducing the risk of a data breach occurring.

The comparison tool also makes it easy for users to customise results based on location and technical requirements. AmviaSearch compares service providers and costs in real-time, so it’s easier for users to make an informed decision on their data security needs.

Nathan Hill-Haimes, Managing Director of Amvia, said: “There have already been several notable security breaches affecting large organisations here in the UK in the last few months. As the creators of a unique data package comparison tool, we feel that we should be reaching out to UK businesses and urging them to consider if their current data supplier offers the most robust security features available.

“With AmviaSearch, our unique comparison tool can show the security features as well as the cost implications, so it’s an excellent resource which demonstrates whether or not a business is getting the best protection for the best price.”