The losses that result from computer attacks on American companies ânetworks fell 61 percent in 2004 but, in compensation, the losses that result from unauthorized access to companiesâ sensitive data have increased exponentially. The figures, released by the Computer Security Institute and the FBI, point to average annual losses of $ 204,000 per company, resulting from attacks targeting PCs or corporate networks, against an average of $ 526,000 in 2003.
The authors of the study concluded that 2004 was the fourth consecutive year of reductions in the volume of losses resulting from the exploitation of system vulnerabilities, a fact that reveals a better preparation of companies in the face of this type of events and of security companies in their times. response when new viruses are detected.
On the other hand, the study, carried out with 700 respondents from public organizations and private companies, shows that the costs resulting from information theft attacks are growing at a fast pace, says the document cited by PC World.
If, in 2003, the losses resulting from access to unauthorized information averaged $ 51,000, last year the figure was $ 300,000. As for the attacks that eventually result in the theft of proprietary information, these cost companies an average of $ 355,000, against $ 169,000 the previous year.
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