HELENA — The Montana Department of Commerce announced on Monday the beginning of a new program that would reimburse businesses for newly implemented cybersecurity measures.
“Well, we just, you know, encourage Montana businesses to be prepared and invest in their future, and, you know, ongoing cybersecurity measures for their businesses,” says Division Administrator for the Business MT Division at the Montana Department of Commerce, Liane Taylor.
The newly developed Montana Cybersecurity Program will pay small to medium-sized Montana businesses back up to $8,000 for cybersecurity measures. The businesses must utilize an accredited Montana cybersecurity company in order to receive compensation.
About $2 million has been allocated for this program as attacks have increased in recent years with over 130,000 Montanans affected by cyber-attacks in 2021 alone.
Taylor at the Montana Department of Commerce says that protecting Montanans from increasing cyber-attacks is vital to the health of our state and economy.
Cyber-attacks such as phishing, malware attacks, and password attacks can harm businesses’ finance, information, and trust with the public.
“The cost to a business, interruptions in their day-to-day work, they can be shut down for a month,” says Taylor.
Thankfully certain cybersecurity measures such as firewalls, encryption software, and antivirus software can help mitigate and hopefully end these types of attacks.
