CNN described 2017 as "the year nothing seemed safe". With data breaches at Equifax, school districts across the country, and even the National Security Agency, cyber attacks impacted untold millions of people in 2017 alone. The trend is on track to continue in 2018 – already, the Identity Theft Resource Center reports that there have been 228 data breaches that exposed the data of nearly 4.1 million users.

Cyber intrusions at large corporations are often the ones making national news. Yet according to the National Cyber Alliance, more than 70 percent of attacks target small businesses. Nearly 50 percent of small businesses have been hacked and of those, as many as 60 percent go out of business after six months.

If you're a small business owner, how do you keep your company safe?

Start by registering for Cybersecurity for SMBs: Protecting Your Business. This free seminar – presented by the Maryland Department of Commerce, the Maryland Chamber of Commerce, and the University of Maryland University College (UMUC) – will take place on Wednesday, April 25, from 8 to 10:30 a.m. at the National Cyber Center of Excellence in Rockville, Md. Speakers include:

• Sen. Susan Lee – Co-chair, Law, Policy & Legislation Subcommittee, Maryland Cybersecurity Council
• Dave Baggett – Founder & CEO, ITA Software
• Ellen Cornelius – Senior Law & Policy Analyst, University of Maryland Center for Health & Homeland Security
• Christopher Caruso – U.S. Secret Service, Baltimore Field Office
• Tom Quinn – Chief Information Security Officer, Global Technology, Enterprise Security, T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc.
• Ola Sage – CEO, CyberRx, e-Management
• Mary Ellen – Seale CEO & Founder, National Cybersecurity Society

Click here for more information or to register. We look forward to seeing you there!