According to the latest annual report from IBM Security, the cost of a data breach continues to climb, with companies paying on average $4.5 million to deal with breaches – an increase of 15% over the last three years. Breaches at 553 organizations in seventeen different industries across sixteen countries and regions that occurred between March 2022 and March 2023 were studied by researchers at The Ponemon Institute. They found that the US, the Middle East, and Canada continue to have the highest costs per breach. At an average cost of $9.5 million per breach, US organizations averaged more than any other country by more than $1 million per breach. The higher cost stems from breaches at healthcare organizations, which were as high as $10.9 million. Other industries averaged $6 million or less. The leading causes of breaches were phishing, which accounted for 16% of all breaches, with stolen credential a close second at 15%. Consistent security training and strong multi-factor authentication both make significant differences in preventing a breach. They are also required in order to be PCI compliant. The PCI program at Bancard Payment is leading the way in protecting you business and your customers credit card data. This is part of your merchant account but there are steps you must take on your end to be compliant. If you have any questions on how to get your business PCI compliant give us a call today!