A Startup Without Cybersecurity is a Waste of Time

This is a bold statement to make, but if we are being genuinely honest with ourselves, why build a castle on sand?

Startups are fast-rising companies, getting funding, acquiring early-stage employees, and users.

They are doing many different important things at different times, but some startups still neglect one key thing that could be the difference between ultimate success and failure: their cybersecurity posture.

In this article, I will show you how you are risking your business and what you can do as a smart entrepreneur.

Why Startups and Small Businesses Neglect Cybersecurity

This negligence in cybersecurity among some startups is concerning, but there are reasons they do this.

1. Cost:

On average, cybersecurity solutions for small enterprises cost around $1000 monthly, sometimes even way more, depending on the industry.

Startups are efficient money management machines; they optimise on costs so much that anything whose effect isn't instant is automatically postponed. Cybersecurity, being what it is, doesn’t have an instant effect until a breach comes knocking. This results in many startups pushing cybersecurity out of the ‘now’.

2. Priority:

Like I wrote earlier, startups, on average, are dealing with a lot of important issues. Marketing, user acquisition, getting funded, technical build, etc.

While these are valid, focusing only on them can create security gaps that are often unnoticed until a strike happens.

3. Ignorance:

Sitting at number three on my list is ignorance, or what I can also call negligence. This is common with businesses that aren’t techy, but still use online technologies.

Schools, Pharmacies, Bookshops, Restaurants, etc. These businesses, while they are not tech-first businesses, use technologies like bank transactions and computers to record, create, and share files containing data.

These are the kinds of businesses that fall into the ‘we simply don’t need cybersecurity’ trap. Unfortunately, they do, because they deal with data. Something attackers love.

4. Size:

Part of what startups are good at is cutting down team numbers as good as they can. While this leads to speed and efficiency while starting, they may see cybersecurity as an added number.

This doesn’t have to be so. You don’t necessarily need to have an in-house cybersecurity team to have a strong cybersecurity posture. Many organizations specialize in providing cybersecurity services to businesses. You can adopt this method, which is the best for a small business.

Why Should Startups and Small Businesses Prioritize Their Cybersecurity Posture

Short answer: Attackers love startups.

Long answer: Attackers know that many startups don’t take cybersecurity seriously, and there has been a gradual shift over time.

Many attackers are now looking away from FAANG-sized companies where they can potentially get millions or even billions, to small or medium-sized businesses because it is easier to break into 10 small businesses with $20k each on average than working for months and even years on large enterprises with less chance.

It has become a rinse-and-repeat pattern. Quick and smooth.

This has further democratized the entry, with the bar lowered, more and more inexperienced attackers are now successfully breaching. Why give them that lever?

Additionally, highly regulated industries like finance may require good security compliance to get some certifications and even funding.

So, as a startup, having cybersecurity in place can be the difference between getting that financial boost or not.

Stay Secure or Get Wipped Out: What Startups Can Do?

Start Somewhere: Don’t just leave everything for later. Start with something. Use an antivirus on your devices, write proper, secure code. Get an affordable subscription that is specific to your exact needs. Just start.

Stay aware: Cybersecurity awareness isn’t for cybersecurity professionals only. Businesses can benefit from it too. Read publications like that from CyberSecurityOnline, Dark Reading. Startup founders and business leaders should sponsor their staff to events like Africa CyberFest, Black Hat, Infosecurity Europe, etc.

Training: Just like staying aware, businesses should also embark on regular security training. Platforms like Cisco Networking Academy and Forage can be beneficial as they are free, yet from industry leaders.

Ending Notes

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Don’t just wait until your first compromise comes knocking before you act. Delay, they say, is dangerous. Just as you intend to scale your business, your cybersecurity posture should also scale with your business. It is never something you pin for later.

Many startups and businesses fail for different reasons, one of which is cybersecurity. Don’t let your efforts and those of your team go down the drain when you could have saved them.

Again, cybersecurity doesn't need to be expensive; you can start anywhere. Sanitize your code, train your team, and use free or low-cost tools that are still good.