BUSINESSES have welcomed plans for more spending on cybersecurity but warned the government not to underestimate the scale of the problem.

Chancellor Philip Hammond has revealed details of how £1.9billion will be spent fighting cyber criminals.

Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the former Dorset resident who worked at Plessey in Poole and went on to invent the world wide web, has welcomed the government focus on the problem.

The National Cyber Security Strategy will see specialist police units boosted and more money devoted to training cybersecurity experts.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) says cybercrime costs small businesses £5.26billion a year. It has welcomed the government’s intention to work with service providers to try and block cyber threats. But it said the government should require “security by design” in all aspects of the digital infrastructure.

Neil Eames, development manager for the FSB in Wessex, said: “This Cyber Security Strategy is very welcome but the scale of threat to small businesses must not be underestimated.

“The determination of the government to act is clear but it is essential efforts to protect the UK economy include a clear focus on small businesses, who often lack the resource on their own to defend against criminal attacks.

“When a small business is attacked, it can lead to weeks of delayed or lost orders, significant financial loss and damaged reputations. It’s an absolute necessity for businesses and government to work together to increase the resilience of the small business community to help them get back on their feet after an attack.

“We would like to see the government do more to provide small businesses with support to improve their basic cyber resilience.”

Meanwhile Poole-based C3IA Solutions – one of only 12 companies nationwide to be certified by the government’s new National Cyber Security Centre – said staff were often the weakness in any business.

It said around 70 per cent of cyberattacks happened after staff allowed them. It said small and medium sized businesses were especially vulnerable.

Director Matt Horan said: “This announcement confirms that the government is committed to hunting down cyber criminals, whatever their motive.

“It has set up the National Cyber Security Centre – which is business-facing – and understands the new threats that all companies and parts of the state are facing.

“It is a growing problem, but with most cyber attacks it is because someone presses the wrong button or reacts to a phishing-type email.

“In about 70 per cent of cases staff are the weak point because they don’t necessarily understand the risks and the threats.”

He added: “SMEs are especially vulnerable because they think that becoming cyber secure might be costly. But it’s nothing compared with the cost of a successful cyber attack to the business.”