The seminar had an attendance of over forty businesses and organisations from Walsall Council, Wolverhampton University and Perfect Home to mention a few.

All businesses had a large interest in learning more about cyber-crime and the precautions they can take against it. Vibrant Networks also conducted a Social Engineering experiment to spread awareness about the consequences of different types of cyber-crime, as well as putting the incidents into perspective for the people who attended the seminar.

The experiment which can also be called a people hack, involved team members pretending they were from a well-known internet company. They were able to highlight how easy it was for attendees to think they were actually from there by signing them up for a free fake £75.00 voucher: they were even able to sign up the Major of Walsall! This showed how people need to be on their guard not only online but also offline too.

Vibrant Networks, The Mayor of Walsall, West Midlands Police Cyber Crime Unit and Wolverhampton Crime Reduction Group took part in the Workshop The event took place in the well-known Manor Farm Community Centre in Walsall, in the West Midlands.

The seminars main purpose was to encourage businesses to take cyber-crime seriously, and to also provide them with the IT help and advice they would need to protect themselves against Ransomware attacks which would disrupt their organisation.
This is important, as research tells us that “74% of small businesses have experienced a cyber security breach, and that 1 in 3 Businesses have suffered a cyber-attack last year. “

It also states that 63% of SME’s do not have cyber insurance in the UK.

Cyber-crime is a real threat that can be the downfall to your business, as it allows strangers to get a hold of various details to do with your organisation. Let’s hear what a few other people have to say about it:

“Cyber-security is a very important issue, and we must all be very concerned. We must take the precautions to protect ourselves and our businesses against these people. They’re clever, and instead of using that to better the society we live in, they instead choose to create havoc.” -Walsall Councillor Chris Towe.

“Many businesses aren’t informed on the subject, and it can have a devastating impact on them, for example what happened to the NHS a few years ago. Company leaders aren’t prioritising cyber-security as much as they should be.” -Marco De Longi, Mayor of Walsall.

Need help with your cyber security needs for your business? We can help. Contact us today at 01922 612387.