Cyberattacks are no longer just an IT issue but have become a significant business risk. When a breach occurs, costs can spiral out of control quickly, driven by various factors; beyond the direct recovery costs, businesses often face hidden expenses tied to data review, regulatory compliance, and legal challenges, which can dramatically inflate the total financial impact.
Understanding what drives these costs and leveraging advanced technology, such as AI-driven solutions, can help businesses stay ahead of these escalating risks.
Complexity & Volume of Data
One of the primary factors driving up the cost after an incident is the sheer complexity and volume of the data that must be reviewed. Today, businesses generate and store vast amounts of data, and according to IDC, as much as 90% of enterprise data is unstructured, consisting of emails, documents, and multimedia files. This unstructured nature adds layers of complexity, especially when these files are scattered across different systems and platforms.
Data review becomes even more complicated when you consider how often initial scans reveal zipped files or extensive email archives, like PSTs. As a result, what starts as a manageable task quickly grows, requiring more people, more time, and more money.
When working with a Fortune 10 healthcare company, Actfore found 14M additional files nested in zip folders that needed to be extracted and reviewed. And while PSTs were once a great tool to help manage storage limits for mailboxes, they are a major security breach concern and incredibly difficult to analyze without the use of technology.
Tackling large volumes of unstructured data and archived files without utilizing technology extends the turnaround time significantly, which can increase both the financial burden and the operational strain on the organization.
Lack of Adequate Tools and Technology
Despite the increasing sophistication of cyberattacks, many companies are still conducting data reviews manually which is slow, inefficient, expensive, and prone to human error. According to the IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report, a longer data breach cycle, where it exceeds 200 days, is costing companies on average $1.39 million more than companies resolving a breach in less than 200 days.
Another major challenge is the inability of these manual processes to handle multilingual data efficiently. In today’s global economy, businesses often have data in multiple languages, a task that requires finding and hiring expensive language experts if no proper technology is in place.
By contrast, taking a technology-first, AI-driven approach not only makes it easy to handle the complexity of multiple languages, but also enhances accuracy and ensures speed, reliability, and security, keeping costs from spiraling out of control. According to IBM, organizations making extensive use of AI and automation can lower the cost of a breach by an average of $1.88 million.
Taking a Technology-Focused Approach
Cybersecurity incidents can result in significant and unexpected costs, particularly when it comes to the data review process. Complexity, manual processes, and regulatory pressures all contribute to the ballooning of expenses after a breach. However, these costs can be managed more effectively with the right approach.
By leveraging AI-driven data mining solutions, like those offered by Actfore, you can significantly reduce the time and resources required to review large volumes of unstructured data. Technology-first workflows help streamline the data mining process, allowing you to receive a timely, actionable notification list and final reports customized to fit your exact needs for compliance.
As cybersecurity threats continue to grow, using a DFIR solution with the right technology in place can mean the difference between a manageable expense and a financial nightmare. By knowing what to expect and preparing accordingly, you can mitigate the risk of runaway costs after a breach.
Regulatory and Compliance Pressures
Navigating the maze of regulatory requirements after a breach is another area where costs can escalate. This is particularly true for multinational corporations operating across multiple regulatory environments, each with its own set of requirements and deadlines. IBM found that 34% of organizations took more than 72 hours to report their data breach, leading to a 22.7% increase in organizations paying fines of more than $50,000 and a 19.5% increase of those paying more than $100,000.
Ensuring compliance with these regulations often involves meticulous data review and timely notifications to authorities and affected parties.
The tight deadlines set by various regulatory bodies can force companies into a corner. When time is short, and the technology isn’t advanced enough to expedite the process, the default solution is to throw more people at the problem. Hiring additional manual reviewers to meet compliance deadlines drives up costs dramatically. However, using a DFIR solution with better data mining technology and an established team of data science experts improves the efficiency of the review and lowers the overall cost. A global medical device company did just that and was able to successfully meet the requirements and deadlines of the 20 jurisdictions with tailored notification lists.
Taking a Technology-Focused Approach
Cybersecurity incidents can result in significant and unexpected costs, particularly when it comes to the data review process. Complexity, manual processes, and regulatory pressures all contribute to the ballooning of expenses after a breach. However, these costs can be managed more effectively with the right approach.
By leveraging AI-driven data mining solutions, like those offered by Actfore, you can significantly reduce the time and resources required to review large volumes of unstructured data. Technology-first workflows help streamline the data mining process, allowing you to receive a timely, actionable notification list and final reports customized to fit your exact needs for compliance.
As cybersecurity threats continue to grow, using a DFIR solution with the right technology in place can mean the difference between a manageable expense and a financial nightmare. By knowing what to expect and preparing accordingly, you can mitigate the risk of runaway costs after a breach.
