Cyber threats closer to home, warns Omagh IT company

OCTOBER marks Cybersecurity Awareness Month – and experts say the threat of cybercrime is far closer to home than many businesses realise.

While major breaches at companies such as Marks & Spencer, Jaguar Land Rover and Co-op dominate headlines, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) remain the most frequent – and most vulnerable – targets.

According to Omagh-based cybersecurity specialists LoughTec, the vast majority of attacks never make the news.

Instead, they quietly devastate smaller organisations that lack the resources and defences of larger corporations.

“Cybercriminals see SMEs as low-hanging fruit,” explained Adrian Bell, director for Cyber Security Global Sales at LoughTec.

“While the financial rewards may be smaller, the barriers to entry are much lower due to limited cybersecurity investment. The result can be catastrophic… from ransomware infections that lock entire networks to data breaches that expose sensitive customer information.”

LoughTec provides IT and cybersecurity solutions for clients across the globe, ranging from large enterprises to SMEs. Its services are tailored to meet the specific security needs of each business.

Despite advances in technology, email remains the number one route of attack. Around 80 per-cent of breaches begin with a phishing email, often disguised as an invoice or delivery update.

“If a cybercriminal gains access to an email account, they can reset passwords, impersonate staff, and infiltrate confidential systems,” said Mr Bell.

“Without advanced threat protection to scan attachments and links, one misplaced click can unleash ransomware capable of paralysing an entire organisation.”

He added that one of the strongest modern defences is a Security Operations Centre (SOC) – a 24/7 monitoring system that detects and responds to threats in real time.

Most attacks occur outside office hours, often late on a Friday night or during weekends. Without constant monitoring, many businesses only realise they’ve been breached when it’s too late.

The average ransomware attack causes 22 days of downtime and major financial losses. Studies show that 60 per-cent of small businesses close within six months of a major cyber incident.

“Cybersecurity should be seen as a form of business insurance,” said Mr Bell. “It’s far cheaper to invest in proactive protection than to recover from an attack.”

LoughTec offers a range of protection services – from advanced email filtering and endpoint defence to round-the-clock SOC monitoring – helping organisations safeguard their data, people, and reputation.