Cyber crime damages incurred by UK manufacturing companies

Luckily, the vast majority (74%) stated that the cyber security measures in place prevented any commercial damage.

However, the remaining 26% informed that they had suffered significant financial loss, with losses ranging from £50,000 to £250,000.

The survey in question was conducted by Make UK together in association with Blackberry Cybersecurity. A total of 112 manufacturers based in Britain participated in the study. The data was published on December 1st, 2022.

The overall trend within the manufacturing security landscape in the UK remains relatively unchanged between 2022 and 2021.

Throughout both periods, around one in ten companies were victims of cyber crime and incurred financial, reputational, or operational damages.

Production halts were the most prevalent outcome of a cyber attack (65%), with reputational damage coming in second (43%). In other words, financial losses incurred were a result of stopping production or loss in customer trust.

Besides that, around three out of ten manufacturing firms were attacked and infiltrated but were able to mitigate any business impact due to the cyber security processes in place.

Vulnerabilities and cost concerns

Manufacturers in the United Kingdom confront a slew of cybersecurity threats, ranging from simple staff mistakes to sophisticated targeted attacks.

Maintaining legacy IT (45%), a lack of cyber capabilities within the organisation (38%), and granting access to third parties for monitoring and maintenance (33%) were listed as the top three cyber security vulnerabilities.

According to manufacturers, the expense of cyber security tools is the most important obstacle to enhancing their degree of cyber protection. Almost four out of every ten manufacturers said this.

Stephen Phipson, Chief Executive at Make UK, commented: “While cost remains the main barrier to companies installing cyber protection, the need to increase the use of the latest technology makes mounting a defence against cyber threats essential. No business can afford to ignore this issue and while the increased awareness across the sector is encouraging, there is still much to be done.”

The second most often identified obstacle is likewise cost-related. Over 35% of players in the industry note that they do not implement more advanced security measures due to the time involved in installing and maintaining the practices.

However, as the manufacturing industry continues to move toward digitisation and automation, which increases the attack surface, companies will be forced to bolster their security practices or suffer the consequences.