Summary: All startups face threats like breaches and phishing, but the right mix of cybersecurity tools and strategies can keep them protected.
Sorry to break it to you, but if you’re running a startup—even just a small one—you’re up against the same cyber threats as large enterprises. In fact, you might be at more risk than any of those big corporations. Why’s that? Because bad actors know most startups don’t have advanced security measures in place. And that makes them more attractive targets.
Studies show that 43% of cyberattacks focus on small businesses. And yes, most startups fall into that category—so you need to defend yourself. How do you do that? First, let’s discuss what cybersecurity challenges you’re up against, then help you find the right tools and strategies to protect your startup.
It’s pretty simple—cybercriminals assume startups don’t have the time, budget, or resources to build strong cybersecurity defenses. More often than not, they’re right. That’s why startups tend to be much more vulnerable than large enterprises, which usually invest heavily in the latest cybersecurity solutions like endpoint protection, threat detection, and intrusion prevention systems.
And then there’s the payoff. For bad actors, breaking into a startup’s systems can be like discovering a goldmine. Once they get inside, they might:
All of this can earn them a lot of money while putting your funding at risk and slowing down your growth before you even get started.
To sum up, attackers see startups as easy targets with weak security, and they know there’s big money to be made when they successfully attack them.
Like we said in the beginning, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a small startup or a big corporation. In the end, you’re facing the same cybersecurity challenges. And unfortunately, there are many you need to watch out for. Let’s go over the biggest cyber threats you should be aware of.
Okay, picture this: you go to work, open your laptop, and try to pick up where you left off, but… your files won’t open. You try a few times, but nothing works. Next, you get an email saying that if you want your files back, you’ll have to pay—and it won’t be cheap. That’s basically what a ransomware attack looks like: bad actors break into your system, encrypt your files, and demand a big payment to decrypt them.
Even if you decide to pay the ransom, there’s no guarantee that attackers will actually restore your access. And while you wait for them to do so, your startup could be dealing with production downtime, potential loss of intellectual property, exposure of sensitive customer data, or legal issues due to a lack of regulatory compliance. It’s really hard to find a silver lining in this scenario.
Probably one of the biggest nightmares for any business is finding out that its sensitive information has been compromised. Unfortunately, this happens more and more often, with the average cost of a data breach now being almost $5 million.
Therefore, your startup should be prepared for cybercriminals targeting your customer data, intellectual property, or any other sensitive information that could land you in trouble if leaked. Because if they pull it off, the results can be devastating. We’re talking stolen employee identities, costly legal fines for failing to comply with regulations, your operations coming to a grinding halt, and more.
Phishing attacks are scams designed to trick people into giving away sensitive information, either personal or related to the company they work for. These attacks often come as fake emails, suspicious text messages, or websites that look like they come from a legitimate source.
Attackers often create a sense of urgency to pressure people into clicking a harmful link, downloading infected files, or entering their login details. If someone falls for it, threat actors can access company systems, steal valuable data, and use it to make money illegally.
Everyone makes mistakes. But when one mistake hurts the whole company, things get serious fast. Studies show that human error is behind a huge number of cyber-attacks. Some research even suggests that up to 95% of data breaches start with an employee's mistake.
Sometimes, all it takes is one person clicking on a malicious link in an email they thought was legitimate—and suddenly, it’s a domino effect as system after system gets compromised.
Of course, security incidents caused by employees aren’t always accidental. There are situations where a person on the inside deliberately opens the door to cybercriminals—that’s what’s known as an insider threat.
Why would anyone do something like that? It could be for money, out of spite, or just to cause chaos. It’s like that quote from The Dark Knight: “Some people just want to watch the world burn.” The important part is that insiders can abuse their access rights to steal or leak sensitive data—or even sabotage your startup’s operations.
Studies show that people’s password habits are far from being great, with many using weak passwords like “123456” for both personal and work accounts. This suggests that your employees’ passwords might not be as strong as you think.
And it doesn’t stop there. A lot of people reuse passwords across different accounts. Why’s that a problem? Well, if one of their other accounts gets hacked and their credentials are compromised, cybercriminals might try using the same credentials to break into your startup’s systems (it’s called credential stuffing).
As you might guess, many people both use weak passwords and reuse them across accounts. And when that happens, it’s easy to see how your company could be walking a fine line between staying secure and facing a serious cybersecurity threat.
Considering all the cyber threats, it can be tough to figure out reliable cybersecurity for startups. The good news? There are plenty of tools and strategies that even small businesses can use to protect themselves effectively. Here are a few things worth adding to your startup’s security game plan.
“Never trust, always verify.” That’s the core idea behind the Zero Trust model. In simple terms, it means you shouldn’t assume anyone or anything trying to access your network is trustworthy—not even people who are part of your company.
Instead, every person and device must be thoroughly verified each time using strict user authentication and real-time network monitoring. Only then can you be sure no outsider sneaks into your digital environment.
The technologies that help bring the Zero Trust model to life are called Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) solutions. They help you control access to specific applications and services, isolating users from resources they don’t actually need.
Someone should only get access to specific apps after their identity, context, and compliance with policies have been carefully checked. This way, you lower the chances of unauthorized access and ensure the right employees can get to the right resources.
This one’s really simple—if you know that people use weak passwords at work, then you need to prevent that at your startup. There are security measures available today—like NordPass, for example—that allow you to create password policies that you can roll out across the entire company.
Once that’s set up, anyone trying to get away with a weak password will be automatically stopped. That simple step can make a big difference in keeping your startup’s passwords strong.
And if your team starts complaining about having to deal with long, complex passwords, you can get them to use a password manager to generate strong passwords and manage them with ease.
Strong passwords are a great start, but they’re not enough to keep your startup safe today. You need extra layers of protection on your business accounts. That way, even if your credentials leak, cybercriminals can’t access your digital systems.
One way to do this is by setting up MFA. This will require anyone trying to log in to provide additional proof of identity beyond just a password. It could be a code sent to their email, a time-based one-time password from an authenticator app, or even a biometric scan, like a fingerprint or face recognition.
Some methods are more secure than others, of course, but the point is simple: with MFA, entering a password is not enough for somebody to get in.
For those who don’t know what firewalls are, they’re cybersecurity solutions that monitor incoming and outgoing internet traffic in real time. Then, based on a preestablished set of rules, they decide what’s safe and what’s not. So, if something suspicious—or downright dangerous—shows up, they block it before it can infiltrate your network.
Additionally, you can use firewalls for network segmentation. That is breaking your company network into smaller blocks called “segments” and controlling how traffic flows between them.
So, for example, you can give certain employees access to just one part of the network, without exposing the rest of it. That way, if a threat slips through, it’s more likely to stay contained in that one area instead of spreading to other parts.
What would you do if someone attacked your company? How would you stop the damage from spreading? Where would you even start fixing what’s already broken? These are the questions you need to answer before anything happens. That’s exactly what an incident response plan is for.
The key is having clear, step-by-step instructions so everyone in your company knows what to do during a cyber-attack. With an incident response plan in place, you can act quickly, minimize damage, and keep your team calm. After all, you don’t want them to panic and add to your troubles.
Most of the tools and services your startup relies on receive regular updates and patches. These are often rolled out to fix security vulnerabilities and keep up with ever-evolving cyber threats.
For that reason alone, it’s essential that you keep all your systems and devices up to date. Skipping a single update might seem harmless, but it can easily open the door to attackers, so make sure you don’t let it slip by.
And then there’s the human side of things—you need to help your team understand why certain security measures matter, why they should use one app over another, and how a single phishing email can trigger a devastating chain of events.
By investing in cybersecurity training, you can clear up confusion, get everyone aligned, and underscore how one serious incident could put the entire business—and everyone’s jobs—at risk.
The answer to questions like this is almost always: it depends. The cost of improving your cybersecurity can range from as little as $500 to well over $100,000 per month. “That’s quite a stretch,” you might say—so let’s unpack this a little bit.
Your startup’s size, industry, goals, and business needs all play a role in determining the necessary cybersecurity for startups. Startups running global operations usually invest those large sums of money. They do so to meet multiple compliance frameworks, manage vast amounts of business and customer data, and integrate a wide range of third-party platforms and services. At that level, cybersecurity typically requires a significant investment—at least $30,000 per month, but usually more.
That’s because it often involves a wide array of cybersecurity solutions—from advanced network access controls and threat detection tools, to cyber insurance and endpoint protection services, all the way to penetration testing and custom security audits (which can cost from $15,000 to $25,000).
If you’re just starting out, you can probably get by with a more basic cybersecurity setup. That would typically consist of antivirus software, a firewall, basic access controls, a password manager, and multi-factor authentication tools.
With all this, and a limited number of licenses, you can likely keep costs under $2,000 a month—or even less, depending on your tools and team size. However, the rule of thumb is that startups should allocate around 5.6% to 20% of their IT budget to cybersecurity programs.
NordLayer simplifies cybersecurity for startups by combining several network protection tools into one accessible platform.
With just NordLayer in your setup, your startup can easily follow many of the best practices we’ve discussed in this article, like enforcing Zero Trust, using MFA, segmenting your network, and setting up firewall protection.
From ZTNA-based access controls and a business-grade VPN to threat protection and threat intelligence, NordLayer delivers enterprise-level security to startups at an affordable price—all without the unnecessary complexity, steep learning curve, or heavy IT overhead.
So, if you want your startup to have security measures that can help protect it from many cyber threats, you can get NordLayer and have more time and energy for what we all know you’d rather focus on—your company’s growth.
Maciej Sikora
Senior Copywriter
A man on a mission to engage audiences with creative wordplay, Maciej knows every complex idea can be broken down into simple words—and that’s his driving force. When he’s not writing, you’ll find him making music, taking a walk with his dog, or watching yet another movie.
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