Two-thirds of big UK businesses have been hit by a cyber attack in the past year, according to the Cyber Security Breaches Survey.

Most of these attacks involved viruses, spyware or malware infiltrating devices. A quarter of large firms which experienced a cyber breach, did so at least once a month. Some of these attacks resulted in costs of millions to the companies.

The survey claimed that 70% of these attacks could have been prevented, while adding that only a fifth of businesses understand the dangers of sharing information with third parties. It is important for all employees to follow online safety protocols both at work and in their home lives.

The results have been released alongside the government’s Cyber Governance Health Check, which was launched following the TalkTalk cyber attack in October 2015. The phone and broadband provider, which has over four million UK customers, said some of their banking details and personal information could have been accessed in the breach.

For more information on this story, visit this BBC News article.

Be Cyber Streetwise is a cross-government campaign, funded by the National Cyber Security Programme. They aim to measurably and significantly improve the online safety behaviour and confidence of consumers and small businesses (SMEs).

Get Safe Online is the UK’s leading source of factual and easy-to-understand information on online safety. Their website offers advice on how you can protect yourself, your computers and devices, and your business against the likes of fraud, identity theft, viruses and other potential online problems.