If you have read anything on the subject, you probably realise that cyber-crime is pretty big, and often very profitable for the cyber-criminals. What you may not realise is quite how big it really is
A country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is a good gauge of how large an economy really is. Measured in US$ the largest economy is the USA which last year clocked in at $25.04 trillion, with the next down the list being China with $18.32 trillion, but then there is a large step down to third place where Japan sits with $4.30 trillion. Now that you understand the size of the world’s leading economies, you may be surprised to hear the cost of cyber-crime: in 2023, the expected cost is going to be $8 trillion. Let that sink in for a second; the cost of one type of crime is roughly double the GDP of the world’s third biggest economy…
Looking at the last few years, there seems to be a rate of growth of around 15% in the cost of cybercrime every year. Assuming that the growth continues at this rate, by 2025 the figure will be around $10.5 trillion.
Are you scared yet?
The cost stated includes all aspects of the crime and not just the amount of money taken. We are talking about theft of intellectual property, lost productivity, and reputational harm to name but a few. That being said, cyber-crime does still seem to be extremely profitable for the criminals that carry it out. This is of course the reason that it is such a problem for the targeted organisations and individuals.
The next problem is that the techniques used frequently evolve and are often too technical for many decision makers to properly understand. This leaves vulnerabilities for cyber-criminals to exploit. I suppose that the message here is that all organisations and individuals need to enlist the help of specialists to avoid becoming victims, rather than waiting to be attacked and then trying to deal with the results.
Remember:
• You and your organisation are targets
• Take proper advice
• Put appropriate defences in place before it is too late