Business confidence in the East Midlands increased for the second consecutive month during March, according to the latest figures from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, with many companies "primed for growth". And we believe that with growth, should come cyber resilience.

The Business Barometer - a proprietary survey of 1,200 companies produced to understand the confidence levels among UK businesses every month - said confidence in the region jumped by five points to 23 per cent last month.

A net balance of 33 per cent of firms expect to increase staff levels over the next year, up 19 points on last month.

Dave Atkinson, regional director for Lloyds Bank in the East Midlands, said:

"It's good to see business confidence in the region continue to climb, with many firms in the East Midlands primed for growth.

"We know lots of businesses are planning how to capitalise on the opportunities that may come their way this summer, with planned investment in developing new products and services and building their teams.

"We will be by the side of businesses as they identify and strive towards their growth ambitions."

At the East Midlands Cyber Resilience Centre, we’re also on the side of businesses, and we believe that with business growth should come cyber resilience.

Cyber security should never be an afterthought for businesses, particularly in a period of sustained growth or expansion.

Any business, regardless of its size, could become the victim of a cyber incident, potentially crippling their operations.

Look at the facts:

• Cyber crime cost UK businesses an average of £4,200 in 2022.
• Data breaches cost businesses an average of $4.35 million in 2022.
• Around 236.1 million ransomware attacks occurred globally in the first half of 2022.
• The most common cyber threat facing businesses and individuals is phishing.

By partnering your business with the police-led, not for profit EMCRC, cyber-crime is both avoidable and affordable. Our Community Membership is FREE, and if you feel your business can help other businesses prepare and protect themselves against cyber threats, join us as a Community Ambassador or a Friend of the Centre and put something back into the community by helping those around you.

If the worst does happen to your business, and you do become a victim of cyber-crime, we can also put you in touch with our Cyber Essentials Partners who are experts on ransomware attacks, data breach issues and disaster recovery. They can offer a reduced rate on their services with a referral from us.

Need more information? Get in touch and a member of our team will contact you.

Reporting

Report all Fraud and Cybercrime to Action Fraud by calling 0300 123 2040 or online. Forward suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk. Report SMS scams by forwarding the original message to 7726 (spells SPAM on the keypad).