Mastercard research shows Canadian small business owners need additional support to prevent, recover from cyber attacks
by CM staff
Mastercard and the Canadian Federation of Independent Business have partnered to deliver the Cybersecurity Academy, with short lessons and free tools tailored to the needs of small businesses.
TORONTO — Cybercrime in Canada has increased over 600 per cent since the start of the pandemic and small businesses are particularly vulnerable. Ahead of Cybersecurity Awareness Month 2023, Mastercard surveyed small business owners across Canada who said they struggle to invest in cybersecurity tools that would best protect them due to limited resources and lack the know-how to effectively recover once a cyber attack occurs.
A cyber breach can cost small businesses money and a loss of trust.
While 16 per cent of Canadian small business owners surveyed feel certain they know the best steps to take following a cyber attack, 18 per cent are totally confident that their business would recover fully from an attack in the next six months. The reality facing small businesses in today’s digital landscape is that cyber attacks are not a matter of if, but when—and what next?
“At Mastercard, we go beyond protecting the transaction, by integrating new thinking and approaches into the foundation of our innovative cybersecurity products and solutions to safeguard an evolving ecosystem,” said Aviva Klein, Vice President, Digital Payments and Cyber & Intelligence at Mastercard in Canada. “Given our global expertise in cyber and intelligence, Mastercard is committed to transferring knowledge to Canadian small businesses – the backbone of Canada’s economy – so they can scale cybersecurity capacity, protect their data, and maintain trust with customers—even after a cyber attack occurs.”
According to Mastercard’s recent study, data protection measures (57%), accountability (53%) and transparency about past cyber incidents (52%) rate among the highest factors that influence Canadian consumers’ perceptions of small business security and trustworthiness. A robust and transparent cybersecurity plan is essential for small businesses to uphold their reputation and maintain long-term resilience, even as cyber threats increase and evolve.
Mastercard and the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) have partnered to deliver the Cybersecurity Academy, with short lessons and free tools tailored to the needs of small businesses. Mastercard also offers a range of free tools and insights via its Small Business Cybersecurity Hub to help owners and entrepreneurs understand cyber risk, effectively defend against cyber threats and create effective, actionable plans for swift recovery.
