Canadian businesses spent $14B on cybersecurity in 2017

OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says Canadian businesses reported spending $14 billion on cybersecurity in 2017 as they confront greater risks in the digital world.

The StatCan survey finds that more than one in five companies said they were impacted by a cyberattack last year, with large businesses more than twice as likely as small ones to be apparent targets.

The most common suspected motive was an attempt to steal money or demand a ransom payment. Businesses said theft of personal or financial information was less common, involving less than one-quarter of the cyberattacks.

The survey finds that to deter, detect or recover from cyberattacks, companies shelled out $8 billion on staff and contractors, $4 billion on cybersecurity software and related hardware and $2 billion on other prevention and recovery measures. The total represented less than one per cent of their total revenues.

StatCan says only 10 per cent of businesses reported cybersecurity incidents to law enforcement agencies last year. It says Canadian businesses expose themselves to greater online risks as they continue to embrace digital technologies.

Data for the survey were collected between January and April, with a sample size of about 12,600 businesses and a response rate of 86 per cent.