'It's not something new:' Cybersecurity experts in Florida stress proactive measures

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- Cyberattacks are happening more often and are getting more expensive. In 2023, 343-million people became victims of some sort of cyberattack. That's according to a report from the Identity Theft Resource Center.

These attacks are happening everywhere, including right here in Florida. Last month, the Florida Department of Health confirmed it was the victim of a data hack.

WEAR News spoke with cybersecurity experts on the problem, and how you can be proactive in protecting your information.

A data breach is a cyber crime -- one that can be devastating to individuals or businesses.

"Their identity gets stolen and bank accounts get established that they never meant to do to begin with, and it can ruin their lives," says Connar McCasland, instructor at the UWF Center for Cybersecurity.

Erich Kron is a security awareness advocate at KnowBe4 who says cyberattacks are becoming more frequent.

"It's not something new," says Kron. "But we're seeing it more and more often."

And it's more expensive to fix.

According to a report from IBM, the global average cost of a data breach in 2024 is nearly $5-million, the highest total ever.

"It's becoming an epidemic with the cost," says Kron.

Cyberattacks come in several forms but phishing, personal data breaches and malware are some of the most common. The City of Pensacola was the victim of a cyber breach earlier in March.

And the Florida Department of Health had a breach in its system in early July.

"If an organization gets attacked like the Florida Department of Health, they don't just have to protect themselves, they have to protect their clients -- which are the people who use their services," McCasland says.

Both entities offered monitoring services for customers after the incidents. McCasland advises people to take those offers seriously.

"If you know that an organization that you do business with is affected by a cyberattack, look into your own credit and either do credit monitoring systems or even freeze your credit, if you don't plan on making any big purchases in the next few months," says McCasland. "Freeze your credit so that you don't have to be impacted by something someone on the internet may do."

And there are still ways to be proactive in protecting your info before a breach ever happens.

"Have good passwords," says McCasland. "And when we say 'good passwords,' we don't just mean use the same good password for everything."

"Try to have diverse passwords and also just check your emails regularly for any suspicious activity going on," she says. "If it feels too good to be true, it probably is. And trust your gut instinct when it comes to anything you see that's odd."