Why SMEs Must Prepare for Cyber Disruption – Before it Happens

Billy Ruston, Cyber Resilience Consultant at Protection Group International

Cyberattacks are no longer just a big business problem. SMEs across the UK and Europe are increasingly being targeted by hackers – and many risk serious disruption because their response plans haven’t been properly tested. When cyberattacks hit, even basic operations can grind to a halt if staff don’t know how to work around system outages or prepare for cyber disruption.

This is a growing concern. The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has warned that cyber threats are “widely underestimated” and increasing in frequency and sophistication. According to the latest government survey, 43% of UK businesses reported a cyberattack in the past 12 months – a figure that rises sharply for medium-sized firms. Meanwhile, EU cyber officials report that attacks across Europe have doubled in just six months.

For SMEs, the impact of disruption can be particularly damaging. Unlike large corporations, many small businesses don’t have expensive failover systems or round-the-clock IT support. Some may have to rely on simple workarounds, such as switching to paper-based processes and calling in external experts to help contain and recover from a breach. But those plans must be realistic – and more importantly, they must be rehearsed.

Resilience exercises – scenario-based simulations that test how a business would continue operating during a cyber incident – are a vital but often overlooked part of cybersecurity. They help staff understand how to keep things moving if IT systems go down: how to serve customers, process payments, or contact suppliers when email and files are offline. They also test how well a team can communicate and coordinate under pressure.

Yet many SMEs either don’t run these exercises or treat them as a one-off checkbox activity. That’s a risky oversight. Budget pressures, lack of internal resource, and confidence in outsourced cyber protection can all contribute to this gap. But no matter how strong your defences are, attackers often find their way in – especially through human error or manipulation.

So-called social engineering attacks are on the rise. These involve hackers impersonating trusted contacts – like former colleagues or service providers – and tricking staff into revealing passwords or granting access. AI-generated fake messages, images, and even voice recordings are making these scams harder to detect. Reports suggest this technique may have been used in recent UK retailer breaches, prompting the NCSC to issue updated password reset guidance.

For SMEs, this means taking a fresh look at their exposure and readiness. Are business continuity plans up to date? Are staff trained to recognise suspicious behaviour? Is there a clear plan for operating manually if systems go down – and has that plan been tested?

Resilience planning doesn’t need to be costly or complex. It can start with tabletop exercises – walking through different “what if” scenarios as a team. Depending on the nature of your business, you might test department-specific plans (e.g. for finance or sales), or wider, cross-team coordination. And given that many small businesses rely on suppliers for key services, it’s worth checking whether those partners are also prepared to respond to a cyber incident.

Ultimately, leadership teams in SMEs play a critical role in embedding resilience. Cybersecurity isn’t just a technical issue – it’s an operational one. The UK’s new Cyber Governance Code of Practice signals a shift towards executive accountability for cyber readiness, especially as new legislation such as the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill comes into view.

In today’s climate, it’s not enough to invest in firewalls and antivirus tools and hope for the best. SMEs must also plan for what happens after an attack – how they’ll maintain services, protect customers, and recover quickly. That starts with resilience exercises and a clear, tested plan.

Because when a cyberattack happens, it’s too late to start figuring out what to do next.