The 2022 Cost of a Data Breach report was eagerly anticipated by cybersecurity professionals and the technology industry as a whole. Following two years of increased remote work and other changes due to the pandemic, the report was an important benchmark on the lasting impact and future trends of data breaches.

Not surprisingly, this year’s report made waves on social media, with many experts sharing key points and highlights with their followers.

Here are five key takeaways from experts about the 2022 Cost of a Data Breach report.

 The cost of a data breach is at an all-time high

https://twitter.com/WIRED/status/1553447884896538627

The final tally of the report for the cost of a breach broke the record, which was the top takeaway for many experts on social media. This year’s cost averaged $4.35 million, an increase of 2.6% from last year, which is concerning.

Health care breaches broke the record for breach costs

https://twitter.com/HIPAAJournal/status/1554173998434508806

While data breaches have been most costly for the health care industry for over a decade — 12 years to be exact — this year’s report gave the health care industry even more cause for concern. The 2022 Cost of a Data Breach report found the cost reached double digits — more than $10 million for the first time.

IR team and plan reduces the cost of a breach

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:6958692343285747714/

A point that was shared on both LinkedIn and Reddit was the correlation between the cost of the breach and incident response. The report found that having an IR team combined with an IR plan reduced the average cost of a breach by $2.66 million.

A zero trust approach also lowers the cost of a breach

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/chasesingleton_cost-of-a-data-breach-summary-activity-6962870549505077249-Azz-?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

While many experts are recommending zero trust as the most effective cybersecurity framework for today’s remote workforce, the report provided eye-opening data on the benefits. The 2022 report found organizations using zero trust that suffered a breach saw average costs of $1.17 million less than those of organizations without a zero trust approach.

The U.S. has the highest cost for breaches

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/sarahand_leaders-platform-databreach-activity-6977015720618385408-y2pN?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Interestingly, the report found that the costs of impacts, containment and remediation varied from country to country, with the U.S. coming in first with the costliest breaches. The report also found the average breach cycle is 277 days, which can be especially disruptive to a business.