Targeted Attacks Against Small and Medium Businesses During 2011.

Successful attacks against high profile large companies tend to make the news, however small to medium sized businesses (SMBs) are not immune to being sent targeted attacks. Many SMBs are at the forefront of innovation and as such present an enticing target for sophisticated attackers. However, such attacks remain the exception rather than the rule, only 1 in 88.93 of our SMB customer base was sent a targeted attack during 2011 according to Symantec.cloud's targeted attack data. Nevertheless, we did observe a 21% increase in the number of attacks against the sector compared with the previous year.

Interestingly, of the companies that were sent targeted attacks, most were only sent one or two attacks during the year.

Graph of frequency of attack during 2011 for SMBs receiving targeted attacks.

This may be due to attackers looking for easy targets, organisations that have adequate protection in place are largely passed over, presumably as attackers look for less well defended targets. Nevertheless, a proportion of SMBs are under a high frequency of attack, receiving in excess of 50 targeted attacks during the year, evidence of a determined and persistent attack against the target.

Targeted attacks are sent to SMBs of all industry sectors; however there is a clear preference for attacks to be sent to businesses within the manufacturing industry. We are not privy to the motivations of the attackers nor do we know what information or systems they are seeking to compromise, but this preference perhaps gives us a glimpse of their priorities.

Graph of percentage of attacks against SMBs according to industry sector.

Inevitably, some SMB sectors are sent fewer attacks than others. The SMB industry sectors receiving the least attacks were accommodation, estate agents, health care and wholesale. Each of these sectors was sent less than 4 attacks during 2011.

From an attacker’s point of view, every successful company has something that is worth stealing. Unprotected or poorly protected digital assets are there for the taking by skilled attackers.  It’s difficult to predict how such attacks will evolve in the future, but we can be certain that attackers won’t be getting any less skilful.

SMBs that fail to consider the security of their information and invest in securing their digital assets risk having their hard work stolen from beneath their noses without ever being aware of the theft having taken place. Unfortunately information security and protection against targeted attacks is important no matter the size of the organisation.