Cyberattacks Cost US Economy As Much As $109B In 2016

Cyberattacks cost the U.S. economy upwards of $109 billion in 2016, with activity coming from inside the country as well as outside.

According to news from Reuters, citing the White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), cyberattacks cost the U.S. anywhere from $57 billion to $109 billion. Outside the U.S., entities with malicious intent were based in Russia, China, Iran and North Korea.

But many cyberattacks were carried out by those residing in the U.S., with the White House Council of Economic Advisers suggesting corporate competitors, activists and organized crime were behind many cybersecurity breaches in the U.S. The report noted efforts from the public and private sectors would go a long way in fighting cyberattacks and would contribute to growth in the gross domestic product.

The report out of the CEA follows another recent survey, which reveals that cybersecurity is the biggest worry for companies, especially since few of them feel prepared to handle an online attack. The survey, which was conducted by Microsoft and Marsh, found that when 1,300 senior executives were polled, two-thirds ranked cybersecurity among their organizations’ top five risk management priorities, with 75 percent saying the business interruption that comes from a hack has the greatest impact on their organizations. But while companies fear the impact of a cyberattack, only 19 percent are highly confident in their organization’s ability to prevent and respond to one. In fact, only 30 percent have developed a plan to respond to a cybersecurity incident.

“Cyber risk is an escalating management priority, as the use of technology in business increases and the threat environment gets more complex,” said John Drzik, president of Global Risk and Digital at Marsh. “It’s time for organizations to adopt a more comprehensive approach to cyber resilience, which engages the full executive team and spans risk prevention, response, mitigation and transfer.”