Despite the growing threat of cyberattacks, many companies are still failing to adequately strengthen their security measures. According to data presented by Cybernews Business Digital Index, 65 percent of analysed North American companies scored D or worse for their cybersecurity efforts. Meanwhile, 48 percent of such companies are in Europe.
The data provided are based on an analysis of 1,182 companies worldwide. Cybernews Business Digital Index graded businesses based on their online security measures, using available data from external sources.
Just 7 percent of North American organizations scored A
The Business Digital Index statistics show that 21 percent of European companies scored F, and 27 percent were graded D. But the situation in North America is even worse—34 percent of analysed companies worldwide scored F, and 31 percent were graded D.
However, there is also a positive trend in Europe, as 13 percent of businesses got an A score, and 20 percent earned a B grade for cybersecurity efforts. What is concerning is that only 7 percent of North American organizations are equipped with A-rated protection, and 8 percent are graded B.
In Europe by industry, technology companies showed slightly better data security than financial institutions. Among tech firms, 40% achieved top ratings (A or B), while 45 percent received poor grades (D or F). The financial sector performed worse, with 35 percent earning A or B ratings and 46 percent receiving D or F scores.
When viewing North America from an industry perspective, finance companies are better at data security than healthcare organizations. Only 3 percent of healthcare entities got an A score, while 9 percent of finance businesses got this rating. However, these numbers are nothing to celebrate as the majority (34 percent) of financial companies were rated D, and 45 percent got an F in the healthcare industry.
34 percent of European and 32 percent of North American companies had recent data breaches
The Business Digital Index shows that the most common security issue is related to Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) configuration, with over 50,000 issues found in Europe and over 150,000 in North American businesses.
In addition, North American organizations lost over 430,000 corporate credentials, almost eight times more than in European countries, where organizations lost over 56,000 corporate credentials.
The Index data shows that companies in Europe combine for over 2000 critical and high-risk vulnerabilities. For comparison, companies in the US and Canada combine for nearly 8000 critical and high-risk vulnerabilities.
In addition, 34 percent of European and 32 percent of North American companies have high-risk vulnerabilities and have been affected by recent data breaches. Besides, 30 percent of employees in Europe and 29 percent in North America reuse already breached passwords, making it even easier for cybercriminals to access a company’s network.
