Small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) should no longer ask if they can afford to invest in cybersecurity.
As leaders consider whether their businesses can thrive without these protocols in place, the answer is increasingly clear: they can’t.
Cybersecurity is not an optional expense in the modern economy—it’s a core part of business infrastructure and a catalyst for sustainable growth and relevance.
Leading executives recognize it as a strategic enabler for growth, client acquisition and operational resilience—not to mention a non-negotiable for compliance and market access.
So, how can SMBs adequately protect themselves? Smaller budgets, fewer specialists and a thinner margin for error make these businesses particularly vulnerable to cyberthreats. These concerns also make recovery from an attack much harder.
Strategic investment, in consultation with the appropriate advisors, is vital for continuity, digital innovation, artificial intelligence readiness and credibility in a world where reputational and legal risks are higher than ever for SMBs.
Moving beyond fear
Scare tactics are not necessary to encourage cybersecurity investment. The realities of the market are stark enough that SMBs should treat cybersecurity as an essential expense.
In Canada, 85 per cent of SMBs said they experienced at least one cyber incident in the past five years—compared with 74 per cent globally, according to a report by Insurance Business Canada.
Despite the heightened risk, fewer than half carry standalone cyber insurance, according to the report. This highlights a preparedness gap that prominent industry players say could make 2025 a pivotal year for digital security.
Meanwhile, the 2024 Allianz Risk Barometer named cyber events the top global business risk. This underscores that cybersecurity is not solely a technical concern, but a fundamental element of overall business strategy.
It’s imperative that SMBs recognize the threat complexity of modern attacks to ensure they allocate sufficient resources to their cybersecurity budgets.
More importantly, cybersecurity underpins:
- AI adoption: Data governance and protection are prerequisites for compliant and sustainable AI integration.
- Client trust: Evidence of solid cybersecurity is often a requirement for business-to-business deals, requests for proposals and retention of key partners.
- Revenue protection: A single breach can lead to costly time offline and reputational hits.
- Business continuity: Resilience in the face of ransomware, phishing or supplier outages depends on robust cybersecurity.
- Digital growth: To enable cloud adoption, remote work or regulatory entry into new markets, you need cybersecurity.
