A cyber incident — ransomware, a system compromise, or a notifiable data breach — generates costs that arrive within hours of discovery. You may need to engage an incident response firm at short notice, pay for emergency IT support to restore systems, take legal advice on ICO notification obligations, and notify affected customers or counterparties. These costs cannot wait for a budget review.
What a cyber response typically costs
Incident response retainers and emergency call-out rates from reputable firms can be significant, often starting in the thousands of pounds for the initial engagement (illustrative, not a quote). If the incident interrupts trading — because your systems are down or you cannot access client data — you may also be funding staff who cannot work productively while the investigation continues.
Where a Credicorp facility helps
A Credicorp facility can bridge the gap between the incident occurring and either your cyber insurance paying out or your trading income recovering. Not every business has cyber insurance, and those that do often find the insurer requires a forensic investigation before releasing funds. A facility means you can act immediately rather than waiting on the insurer's timeline.
Preparedness steps that reduce the need for emergency finance
- Maintain an offline backup of critical data that cannot be encrypted by ransomware.
- Hold a cyber insurance policy that includes incident response cover and a reasonable call-out limit.
- Keep a small emergency cash reserve as a first-24-hours buffer before any facility or insurance kicks in.
We lend only to UK limited companies and LLPs, and the loan is to the company with no director personal guarantee. As business finance outside the consumer-credit regime, it is not covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or FSCS.
See also: Covering an unexpected cost with business finance, Can business finance cover emergency premises repairs?.