New cyber security page for Sandwell businesses

30th July 2024

After hearing an eye-opening talk on cyber security, the Sandwell Business Ambassadors held an information event for Sandwell businesses. We also helped to create a cyber security information page.

At our monthly meetings, we usually host guest speakers who tell us about a topic close to their hearts – a topic that is also pertinent to Sandwell businesses. We are glad to use our networks and platforms to spread the word about these topics. And this dissemination of information never felt more important than after our April 2024 meeting. There, we heard from Detective Inspector Michelle Ohren of West Midlands Police, about the increasing threat of cyber security.

DI Ohren is managing director for the Cyber Resilience Centre for the West Midlands. The centre supports regional businesses and third-sector organisations to protect themselves against cyber crime. (The area it covers includes the West Midlands county, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Hereford, Shropshire and Staffordshire.)

The threat of cyber crime on all of our organisations is serious – and increasing. As the National Crime Agency points out: cyber crime “costs the UK billions of pounds, causes untold damage, and threatens national security”. According to Microsoft, 87 per cent of UK businesses are unprepared for cyber attacks (source: Tech Republic).

The effects of cyber crime on an organisation could include:

Financial costs
Temporary loss of access to files and networks
Website disruption
Unavailability of online services and applications
Corrupted and/or damaged software and systems
Permanent loss of data
Account takeovers
Hacking
Data being exfiltrated and held to ransom
Data released on the dark web
Reputational risk
Risk to vulnerable service users.

There are many things that businesses can do to better protect themselves from cyber crime. The Cyber Resilience Centre also offers lots of valuable support.

Cyber Crime Masterclass

To tell Sandwell businesses about the steps they can take to mitigate their risks, we hosted a ‘Cyber Crime Masterclass’ with DI Ohren at the Sandwell Start-Up Hub in July.

It was a true team effort from our Ambassadors, with Rob Green from Robinson’s Bakery supplying breakfast and our chair Alan Taylor giving an introduction.

DI Ohren covered:

How to enhance personal and workplace cyber security
Identifying and preventing phishing, smishing and vishing
How to improve staff awareness
How to manage passwords effectively.

We are very grateful to her for coming to talk to our attendees. Alan Taylor said: “This masterclass was a crucial reminder of how important cyber security is. The insights and practical advice shared during the session highlighted the steps we can all take to better protect our businesses.”

If you missed it (and even if you were there) we recommend you check out the new cyber security page we have helped to create for the Sandwell Business Growth website. It contains links to the Cyber Resilience Centre for the West Midlands, details of tools and resources, and suggestions for quick ways you can help in the fight against cyber crime.