Cyberattacks are raising your prices (feat. Eva Velasquez)

Cyberattacks are raising your prices (feat. Eva Velasquez)

From Lock and Code by Malwarebytes

May 3, 2026 · 41 min · Season 7 · Episode 9

About this episode

The episode discusses the impact of cyberattacks on small businesses and how they are leading to price increases, referred to as the 'cyber tax'.

Your prices could be going up because of a little something that one group has started calling the “cyber tax.” Not a “tax” in any regulatory sense of the word, this newly named “cyber tax” is instead a consequence of the growing number of cyberattacks on small businesses. According to the latest research from the Identity Theft Resource Center, 81% of small- and medium-sized businesses suffered a data breach, a security breach, or both, within the past year. And of those businesses, more than 50% of lost more than $250,000. According to the most recent data from the US Federal Reserve , the median American family has just $8,000 in savings, meaning that a hit of $250,000 could bankrupt a family and turn their lives upside down. But there’s an interesting layer within this data—the median American family is quite similar to the median American business. In fact, they’re often the exact same person. The local grocer, the nearby HVAC repair service, the avid cyclist who just opened a bike shop, and the tax professional, and physical therapist helping out neighbors are everyday individuals and family members. They do not have multimillion dollar corporations at their backs…

People in this episode

Guest: Eva Velasquez

Topics covered

  • cybersecurity
  • small business
  • data breach
  • economic impact
  • price increase

Keywords

  • cyber tax
  • cyberattacks
  • small businesses
  • data breach
  • economic impact

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Identity Theft Resource Center, US Federal Reserve

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