Expert comment from leading figures within the business community, on a variety of topical issues across a range of sectors. CYBER SECURITY THREATS: A NEW BUSINESS REALITY Recent headlines continue to confirm cyber-attacks are clearly growing in scale, and incidents continue to be on the rise, with 4 in 10 businesses having experienced an attack in the last year. Cyber security remains a key risk area for businesses with increasing frequency and requiring awareness ‘from the top’ to be prepared and able to respond appropriately. A recent cyber briefing event hosted by KPMG Isle of Man at the Villa Marina sought to bring context to cyber security for all levels of an organisation, from the boardroom to the back offi ce. A key theme looked at cyber security as a business issue, not just an information technology issue, and at adopting a business-led approach, supported by deep technical skills. A report by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) claimed that in the case of more than half (57%) of businesses who had suffered a recent breach, the incident had first been spotted by staff rather than by software, indicating the importance of educating and training staff, at all levels. Expert speakers from KPMG Isle of Man and the UK discussed topics including cyber security threats and trends, with a particular focus on financial and retail sectors, current threats plus the weaknesses businesses currently have, the wider threat of cyber-crime and finally how all of this can impact your business, regardless of size. “With the threats, risks, best practices and technologies associated with IT and business operations ever-changing, it was an opportunity to brief members of the island’s business community on the topical issues”, said Bryan Beesley, Senior Manager at KPMG Isle of Man. “Whether it be proprietary cyber maturity assessments and baselining methodology, the steps to be considered beyond GDPR or simply looking at the breadth of Cyber Defence Services available to support businesses in determining its risks, it was an important morning and was encouraging to see businesses are keen to learn and putting steps in place to ensure protection over their organisation”.  connected digitally. We therefore must ensure that we remain an economically stable nation, through the securing of all of our business operations and activities across the digital domain, so we can sustain the fortunate lives we lead.”  KPMG’s Digital and Cyber Security services can help businesses proactively and reactively manage their technology risks by way of boardroom reviews, data analytics, forensic technology and cyber maturity assessments through to cyber defence and response programmes. KPMG is recognised as one of the global leaders in Robotic Process Automation (RPA), so the event proved to be the perfect opportunity to launch this service line under their Isle of Man digital umbrella. “RPA is a methodology and solution that is able to support businesses in optimising their processes and activities by automating day-to-day activities and therefore releasing corporate resource to undertake more focused activities. Having recently travelled to Amsterdam, the heart of KPMG’s RPA operation to finalise our offering, we’re very excited to be launching this service to the local marketplace”, explained Simon Nicholas, Partner and Head of the firm’s digital service. “The Isle of Man is a special place to all of us who live and operate from here and we pride (and promote) ourselves as an island that is highly 14 | With the threats, risks, best practices and technologies associated with IT and business operations ever-changing, it was an opportunity to brief members of the island's business community on the topical issues. Bryan Beesley, Senior Manager, KPMG Isle of Man