Many businesses spend a lot of time and effort ensuring that they provide exceptional customer experience. For example, they invest in IT solutions that make it more convenient for customers to shop and access certain services via the internet as well as enable employees to serve customers remotely. However, what some businesses fail to consider is that customer experience can be negatively impacted by poor cybersecurity — here's how.
Cyberattacks can disrupt business services and operations
Customers today expect a seamless experience when they shop or use business services online. If a business falls victim to a cyberattack, it can disrupt the very same operations and services that customers have come to rely on. For example, an attack on a bank's website can prevent customers from accessing their accounts or making transactions, leading to inconvenience and frustration.
Moreover, since technology is at the heart of many business processes, a cyberattack can cripple or completely halt a company’s operations. The suspected ransomware attack on CommonSpirit Health, for instance, forced the hospital chain to take its systems offline, leading to delays in surgeries and other patient care services across the United States.
Data breaches can endanger customers’ security
When a company suffers a cyberattack, its customers are also often put at risk. For example, the Equifax hacking incident in 2017 compromised the sensitive information — including names, addresses, birth dates, and Social Security numbers — of 143 million American consumers.
Attackers can use stolen customer data to commit identity theft and other kinds of fraud and launch targeted scams. They can also use this information to access those customers’ medical histories, bank accounts, and employee accounts, which can cause victims financial losses and legal complications. And if attackers sell stolen customer data on the dark web, other cybercriminals can purchase and also use this data for malicious purposes.
Read also: Data breaches: A definitive guide for business owners
Cyberattacks and data breaches can break customer trust
An Arcserve survey found that 59% of consumers would avoid doing business with companies that suffered a cyberattack in the past year. This shows that even a single incident can erode customer trust and damage a business’s reputation, which can then lead to long-term financial losses. In fact, following a data breach, companies saw an increase of up to 7% in customer churn rate, translating to millions of dollars in lost revenue.
59% of consumers would avoid doing business with companies that suffered a cyberattack in the past year.
What should your business do?
If your company wants to create and keep providing a positive customer experience, you need to invest in and continuously update your business’s cybersecurity. Doing so will minimize disruptions to your services and operations as well as keep your customers safe.
It’s also best to clearly communicate your cybersecurity efforts to your customers so you can show how serious you are about protecting their data. Not only will this help build customer confidence and loyalty, but it will also differentiate you from your competitors.
You can boost your company’s cybersecurity in many ways, such as by:
- Investing in employee security awareness training – instills good cybersecurity habits and teaches employees how to identify and respond to potential cyberthreats
- Implementing comprehensive cybersecurity solutions – the use of multiple physical and technical security measures to keep the business’s data and systems protected
- Regularly testing and updating cybersecurity solutions – ensures cybersecurity measures remain effective in detecting and preventing even the newest cyberthreats
- Monitoring IT systems around the clock – enables companies to quickly detect and respond to potential cyberthreats
To ensure you’re on the right track with your cybersecurity efforts, partner with Fidelis . We can handle all your cybersecurity needs, from planning, deployment, and configuration to ongoing management, monitoring, and reporting. Get in touch with us today.
