Research highlights crippling data breach losses

UK businesses continue to pay dearly for data breaches

The cost of a data breach rose by 28 per cent last year, mainly due to the subsequent loss of business, according to research published today by encryption firm PGP.

The 2008 Annual Study: UK Cost of a Data Breach report found that the average total cost per incident rose to £1.7m in 2008, up from £1.4m in 2007, and that each lost customer record cost firms an average of £60, a 28 per cent increase on the 2007 figure of £47.

Seventy per cent of all cases involved insider negligence, highlighting the need for better end-user education, while just 30 per cent of incidents involved malicious acts, and a third resulted from third-party errors.

"In just the second year of this UK study, research proves that UK businesses continue to pay dearly for a data breach," said Larry Ponemon, founder of The Ponemon Institute, which carried out the research.

"As costs continue to rise, companies must remain on guard or face losing valuable customers in this unpredictable economy."