Cyber security is the need of the hour for many entrepreneurs. Also, with growing digitalisation globally, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are expected to face cyber attacks.

This was highlighted in a workshop held in Jharkhand capital city Ranchi on Friday.

As it is, it is all the more a cause of concern since they lack understanding of security risks and have limited capital allocation to mitigate such threats, experts opine.

“There is a need to equip these businesses with knowledge and hands-on training on how to identify and combat these threats, and, become more cyber-resilient”, PTI quotes Union MSME Ministry’s Director SK Sahoo as saying. 

The vulnerabilities of these businesses stem from several factors such as "lack of understanding of cyber security risks, less prioritisation for safety and limited capital allocation”, PTI quotes Sahoo saying in a workshop in Ranchi.

“It is important to bridge these gaps by imparting skills and knowledge on how to react when faced with cyber security breaches”, Sahoo said.  

The workshop was organised by the US Consulate General Kolkata and CUTS International, in collaboration with MSME-Development Institute, Ranchi, and the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC).  

Noting that limited awareness resulted in a drastic increase in cybercrime, C-DAC Patna Director and Ranchi based office chief Aditya Kumar Sinha said the risk of SMEs increases many folds seeing their cyberspace vulnerability.