This archive report was first published on 21 June 2021.
June 21, 2021, marked a significant milestone for small businesses worldwide as the United Nations General Assembly designated Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Day to raise awareness of their contributions to sustainable development and the global economy.
On this day, Kaspersky's Chief Business Officer, Alexander Moiseev, highlighted the remarkable adaptability of small businesses in the face of the pandemic. As the world economy declined, many expected small organizations to cut cybersecurity costs to focus on essential expenditures for survival. However, data from Kaspersky's small business security product revealed a different story.
According to sales trends, there were two significant drops in purchases that correlated with the strictest lockdown periods in March-May 2020 and the sharp increase in cases in October 2020. Notably, the sales fall did not stagnate; instead, it bounced back in the following two months to its pre-lockdown level.
This trend suggests that small companies were cautious, ensuring their expenses were secure, but brought security protection back as soon as they felt more stable. By the end of the year, the demand for cybersecurity across small businesses was even higher than in the pre-pandemic months at the beginning of 2020.
As remote work and increased digital tool usage persisted beyond 2020, protecting sensitive data and digital assets remained essential for 2021. Small businesses, regardless of their industry, collect and store personal data or have intellectual property that demands security measures. It is also crucial to take care of employees' IT and technology needs and cybersecurity awareness.
Although a survey revealed that people working in small businesses tend to be more self-sufficient and require less employer support with equipment and IT tools than those in larger firms, they should still be aware of cybersecurity hygiene and data protection practices.
Kaspersky, a global cybersecurity and digital privacy company founded in 1997, has been providing innovative security solutions and services to protect businesses, critical infrastructure, governments, and consumers worldwide.
