Raising resilience in the online world: Melius Cyber

The business world is a challenging place.

From volatile financial markets to rising costs, supply chain setbacks, shifting consumer sentiment and skills shortages, the list of demands placed upon bosses grows longer with each passing day.

Throw in the increasing threat of cyber criminals, whose attacks are tipped to cost the global economy as much as $10.5 trillion every year by 2025, and the burden becomes greater still.

Relief then for Newcastle-based Melius Cyber, which arms SMEs with cost-effective online defence mechanisms that constantly monitor systems to thwart hackers’ assaults and ensure business continuity in the event of a breach.

And in an environment where statistics show 60 per cent of small businesses fold within half a year of being caught in online criminals crosshairs – and where hackers exploited CrowdStrike’s headline outage and stole AT&T Wireless customer call and text data across the summer – its support has never been more important.

Just ask Jules B.

The multi award-winning independent designer clothing retailer was hit by a $100,000 ransomware attack a year ago, which caused great reputational and financial damage.

Although hackers failed to compromise customer data, the raid nevertheless cost the Newcastle-headquartered operator two weeks’ turnover and caused further economic strain when insurers disputed its claim for the impact caused.

Spurred by a desire to foil future such incidents, the company turned to Melius Cyber to implement a comprehensive defence strategy.

That move saw it adopt the Melius CyberSafe subscription service, which provides continuous penetration testing and vulnerability scanning to identify and address potential security weaknesses across a business’ online footprint.

And with an advanced anti-ransomware system now complementing enhanced levels of antivirus and anti-malware protection, and further URL and web filtering, its online barricades are now reinforced to repel future assaults.

Highlighting the value of its partnership, Julian Blades, who founded Jules B 40 years ago with wife Rhona, says: “The attack was a wake-up call; Melius Cyber’s expertise has been invaluable in fortifying our digital defences.

“It’s CyberSafe subscription and vulnerability scanning services have given us peace of mind and allowed us to focus on what we do best – delivering exceptional fashion to our customers.”

Steve Cowie, Melius Cyber non-executive director, says “Our work with Jules B was testament to the importance of cybersecurity in the retail sector.

“Our partnership has enhanced its security posture, strengthening its defences against future attacks, and has improved threat detection and response capabilities, ensuring quicker identification and mitigation of threats.

“Furthermore, it has delivered increased digital confidence, meaning Jules B can focus on its core business activities without constant fear of cyber threats, while reassuring customers of its commitment to safeguarding personal information.

“Our tailored solutions have not only addressed its immediate security concerns, but also positioned it for long-term digital resilience.”

Pictured, left to right: Steve Cowie, non-executive director at Melius Cyber, and Julian Blades, co-founder of Jules B

www.meliuscyber.com