Email Security Blog

How AI Security Measures Impact the Cost of Data Breaches (To the Tune of $3.81M)

It’s the Million Dollar Question – Literally.

Business Owners: When facing a data breach, would you rather pay a cybercriminal $6.71 million or $2.9 million?

No doubt you’re thinking you don’t want to pay the cybercriminal anything, but the awful truth is that data breaches do happen. In the U.S. alone, there were 2,794 reported data breaches in 2020 alone.1 You can’t predict them, you can’t always stop them…but you can reduce your risks if you have the right security measures in place. According to a recent IBM investigation, those who have fully employed security measures that include artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, analytics, automated security reduce the risks of a costly breach.2IBM’s 2021 Cost of a Data Breach Report examined results from 537 organizations in 17 different countries and across 17 industries. The key findings shared in this report are nothing short of alarming.

Here are just a few:2

  • There was a 10% increase in the average cost of a breach from 2020 to 2021.
  • In breaches where remote work was involved, the average costs of a data breach were $1.07 million higher.
  • The largest share of breach expenses comes from lost business, at 38%
  • In 44% of breaches, customer personally identifiable information (PII) was lost.
  • 20% of breaches were caused by compromised credentials.
  • The average number of days to identify and contain a data breach was 287.
  • The average total cost of a breach caused by a business email compromise (BEC) was $5.01 million.
  • The top two attack vectors responsible for data breaches are business email compromise (BEC) and phishing.

As bad as these numbers are, the story gets worse because so much is preventable. According to the report, “Security AI and automation had the biggest positive cost impact”. The report goes on to say, “In 2020, organizations without security AI/automation saw breach costs of $6.03M, vs. $2.45M with fully deployed security automation, a difference of $3.58 million, or 84.4%”. And, “Security AI/automation was associated with a faster time to identify and contain the breach”.2

Ninety-one percent of all cyberattacks and resulting data breaches begin with a spear-phishing email.3 And, the U.S. has had the highest cost average for eleven straight years.2 That is a strong indicator for what is ahead.

Is your company fully protected? INKY can help.

An investment in a cloud-based email security service is what you need – one that is designed to catch everything, including spear phishing, business email compromise (BEC), spam, malware, and more. INKY utilized the very technologies IBM suggests are key: artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, analytics, automated security. And, according to the averages IBM reported, INKY could literally save a company millions of dollars in revenue, not to mention the trust and allegiance of their customers.

INKY® uses intelligent machine learning algorithms to catch abnormalities in emails, even if the threat has never been seen before. Cost-effective and powerful, INKY integrates seamlessly with any email platform. IT departments love INKY’s reporting features, which allow administrators to review phishing threats that have been identified and see how employees are handling them. INKY can also be implemented quickly, regardless of whether your employees work at the office or remotely. INKY works on any device - including mobile - and places highly visible warning banners directly in the email.

Learn more about what a phishing attack can cost your business, and how INKY® can help prevent it.

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INKY™ is the most effective hero in the war against phishing. An award-winning cloud-based email security solution, INKY™ prevents the most complex phishing threats from disrupting or even immobilizing your company’s day-to-day business operations. Using computer vision, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, INKY™ is the smartest investment you can make in the security of your organization. INKY™ is a proud winner of the SINET 16 Innovation Award and was a finalist in the RSAC Innovation Sandbox Competition. Learn more about INKY™ or request an online demonstration today.

1Source: https://www.ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2020_IC3Report.pdf

2Source: https://www.ibm.com/security/data-breach

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