Cybercrime cost the world more than $1 trillion in 2020 — around 1% of global GDP.
This is according to the report by Atlas VPN, which states that says while $945 billion were lost due to cyber incidents, $145 billion were spent on cybersecurity.
The numbers are based on the Hidden Cost of Cybercrime report by McAfee (released in December 2020), which compiled data from publicly available sources on national losses and interviews with cybersecurity professionals from 1,500 companies in Japan, Australia, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States.
Overall, cybersecurity costs in 2020 went up by more than 50% compared to 2018, when over $600 billion was spent to handle cybercrime. In the meantime, losses due to cyber incidents surged by 81% compared to two years ago when damages were $522.5 billion.
While cybercrime risks are rising every year, many organizations still fail to recognize them, says the report. One-fifth (20%) of organizations worldwide have no plans on how to protect against cybercrime events.
Organizations in Canada are the leaders when it comes to cybersecurity practices. More than half (55%) of the surveyed organizations there have planned out how to protect against cybersecurity incidents and how to manage them if they happen.
“No organization is completely immune to cyberattacks, while their consequences can be devastating. Therefore, both strategies are essential if a company wants to mitigate cybersecurity risks. Having an action plan should your company get hacked is just as important as safeguarding it against such threats,” says the firm