October marks Cyber Security Awareness Month, a national initiative running for over two decades. Yet many small businesses still leave cyber basics in the 'I’ll do it tomorrow' basket.

The national cyber security theme this October is ‘Building Our Cyber Safe Culture’. IDCARE is complementing this with its ‘Cyber Resilience Isn’t a Tomorrow Job – Start Today’ campaign. The campaign highlights simple, practical steps you can take to defend your business against cyber threats.

IDCARE provides the Australian Government Small Business Cyber Resilience Service. It helps small businesses respond to cyber incidents and build resilience to scams, identity fraud, fake invoicing and other cyber risks.

Why small businesses must act now

Small businesses remain a prime target for cybercriminals, with devastating consequences.

• Small businesses that reported to IDCARE in the past year experienced an average financial loss of $47,400 – enough to cripple many operations.
• Businesses take 20% longer than individuals on average to respond to a cyber incident – this gives criminals more time to cause damage.
• Those who completed IDCARE’s free Cyber Health Check recorded an average score of just 34/100 – revealing significant vulnerabilities.
• 78% of small businesses that contacted IDCARE for help reported unauthorised access to their Facebook accounts – disrupting operations, reputation, and customer trust.

Data breaches hurt more than just business

A data breach doesn’t just harm the business involved – it affects customers, suppliers, and the wider community who rely on them. IDCARE incident data shows:

• 74% of small businesses do not have a data breach response plan
• 47% of small business data breaches were the result of compromised email systems
• many incidents could have been prevented with multi-factor authentication.

Free help is available

Through the Small Business Cyber Resilience Service, IDCARE provides:

• A free Cyber Health Check to measure cyber resilience and identify risks.
• One-on-one consultations with cyber advisors offering tailored, practical guidance.
• Access to cyber psychology support for those experiencing stress and emotional impacts from cyber crime.
• Ongoing resources, tips, and action plans to lift cyber maturity.

Visit IDCARE for services for sole traders and small businesses.