Data vulnerabilities can seriously threaten the value of a business. As the cyber-risks facing organisations intensify, cybersecurity is becoming a critical part of the due diligence process for M&A.

Buyers beware

In August 2017, a US court handed down a ruling that confirmed Verizon’s worst fears. A judge decided that its subsidiary Yahoo! would face litigation from more than a billion account holders.

The claimants say their personal information was compromised in successive cyber-attacks on Yahoo! – which went completely undetected at the time. Verizon became liable for these breaches when it purchased Yahoo! in June.

As Verizon’s predicament shows, data has become a whole new risk area for M&A.

The onus is on acquiring businesses to assure the integrity of the data they’re taking ownership of. The M&A community can no longer neglect cybersecurity due diligence.

Our latest report explores how cyber due diligence can help M&A practitioners to safeguard the value of an acquired business.