The UK IT sector has the highest number of data breaches of any industry, with over 300,000 cyber security breaches in the past year alone. And, with photo sharing apps such as BeReal and Snapchat on the rise, the potential for severe data breaches when these apps are used at work is creating panic across many UK industries.
Interested in identifying the sectors most at risk, the experts at Scams.info used data from the 2022 Cyber Security Breaches Survey to identify the UK industries with the most cyber security breaches.
Key findings:
• The information and communication (IT) industry is the least cyber-secure in the UK, hitting the top ranking with 320,060 data breaches in 2022, and 66.17 average breaches per employee.
• The food and hospitality sector is the most cyber-secure, with 5,176 breaches – 60 times less than the IT industry.
The UK industry with the most cybersecurity breaches in 2022
| Rank | Industry | Number of data breaches in the past year | Average no. breaches per employee |
| 1 | Information/communication | 320,060 | 66.17 |
| 2 | Finance/insurance | 305,785 | 18.45 |
| 3 | Retail/wholesale (including vehicle sales and repairs) | 183,500 | 11.51 |
| 4 | Transport/storage | 111,654 | 4.98 |
| 5 | Education | 106,365 | 8.04 |
| 6 | Utilities/production | 55,862 | 3.10 |
| 7 | Construction | 54,847 | 11.56 |
| 8 | Professional, scientific/technical | 8,370 | 0.51 |
| 9 | Health, social care/social work | 7,010 | 0.42 |
| 10 | Entertainment, service/membership organisations | 6,238 | 0.85 |
| 11 | Administration | 5,674 | 0.05 |
| 12 | Food/hospitality | 5,176 | 0.04 |
According to Scams.info, IT employees are over three times as likely to suffer a cyber security breach than those in the finance and insurance industry (18.45 average breaches). This adds up to IT employees potentially suffering cyber breaches at least once per week each, on average.
Food and hospitality industry is the most cyber-secure
Scams.info also found that, in 12th place, the food and hospitality industry is the most cyber-secure of all sectors observed, with only 5,176 data breaches in the past year, equating to a miniscule 0.04 breaches per employee. This is a 314,884 drop in data breaches when compared to the IT sector, and 498 fewer annual breaches than the administration and real estate sector in 11th place.
Web development and cyber security expert, Ledi Sallilari, from the SEO consulting firm Reboot, offered the following tips on the best ways businesses and employees to protect themselves from data breaches at work:
• For tech and remote-based industries, the importance of cyber security training is invaluable. Implementing safe practices when working online can play a vital part in keeping the data of your company, clients and employees safe from attack.
• The main cause of online security breaches can be largely put down to human error. Avoid easily guessable passwords that use identifying information (such as your dog’s name), and opt for the longest passwords possible. If there is an option for your password to be between eight and 24 characters, go for 24.
• Be aware of phishing attacks, and do not open any emails you do not recognise. Some hackers may even impersonate your boss, so it’s always best to double check directly with the alleged sender themselves before actioning anything from a suspicious email.
