Overview

Cyber-attacks and data breaches cost organisations billions of pounds every year. As the world becomes more digitally-led that figure is likely to go up.

Incidents are increasing globally and are unpredictable, sometimes going undetected for months or years.

Cyber-threats can be:

• malicious software that attempts to breach your organisation's firewalls
• unsolicited email, containing a link to a legitimate website, which launches a program and allows unauthorised access to all of your organisation's systems and databases

There are many different types of cyber-attacks, including social engineering and phishing. The people and organisations who carry them out have different motivations, including money or political ideals.

Page last updated: 1 June 2026