Small-, medium-sized businesses unprepared for cyberattack.

• Position: CYBERSECURITY - Brief article

High-profile viruses and malware may make the headlines, but according to Leon Ward, field product manager at IT security firm Sourcefire, it's the less targeted and more general threats that will affect businesses of all sizes. "Unless you have the capability in place to deal with that attack when it happens," said Ward, "you're in a bad place."

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Where would your business be if its systems became so infected they had to be shut down for a day or two or more? Do you know how well-prepared you are for that possibility?

A July 2012 report from insurance group Hiscox revealed that 13% of small- to medium-sized businesses (SME) in the United Kingdom (UK) do not know what cybersecurity measures they have in place. Of the other 87% of respondents in the mid-May study of 300 SMEs with fewer than 10 employees, only one-quarter said they are confident about the cybersecurity.

Interestingly, only 41% of the professionals surveyed are worried about possible breaches of their systems. And, the study showed, SME owners are apparently more concerned about technological issues, such...