Average Cost of Data Breach in Health Care Industry Hit $7.13 Million in 2020
Exceeds global average by more than 84%
Recent years have witnessed a surge in the number of data breaches, causing a massive financial hit to businesses worldwide. With millions of people working from home and using videoconferencing and cloud applications, the COVID-19 pandemic has only increased the number of these malicious attacks. According to data presented by AksjeBloggen.com, the health care industry tops the list of the most expensive data breaches with an average cost of $7.13 million, 84% more than the global average.
The global average cost of a data breach has fluctuated between $3.5 million and $4 million in recent years. In 2020, it hit $3.86 million, a 1.5% drop year-over-year, revealed the Ponemon Institute's Cost of a Data Breach Report 2020, commissioned by IBM. The report also showed it usually took 280 days for an organization to spot and contain a breach, a day more than a year ago. However, statistics indicate these figures vary significantly based on industry.