ANN ARBOR – In a recent MITech TV interview, David Behen, Chief Strategy Officer and Co-Founder of SensCy, shed light on a growing—but often underestimated—crisis: the cybersecurity gap facing small and mid-sized organizations (SMOs).

“Cybersecurity is scary. Small and medium-sized organizations right now sort of don’t think they’re the target—but they are a target,” Behen said. “The data shows that, year over year, there’s a 400 percent increase on cyberattacks on small and medium-sized organizations. And they are the lifeblood of the economy.”

New Data Paints a Stark Picture

Behen referenced findings from SensCy’s 2025 SMO Cybersecurity Readiness Report, which highlights widespread underpreparedness across the SMO community. One of the most telling insights?

“Less than 40% of SMOs have a cybersecurity incident response plan,” he said. “The data suggests that if you don’t have one in place, and you get hit with a cyberattack, you’ll be down for an average of 22 days… that’s a long time.”

Other key stats from the report include:

  • Nearly half of SMOs (47%) have no formal cybersecurity budget

  • 54% still believe they’re too small to be targeted

  • Yet 43% of all cyberattacks are aimed directly at them

“There’s a real disconnect between perception and reality,” Behen noted. “And that’s where the risk lies.”

Making Cybersecurity Part of Doing Business

One of Behen’s core messages was that cybersecurity can no longer be seen as optional—it’s fundamental.

“Cybersecurity is part of doing business now,” he emphasized. “I talk to organizations every day, and I’ll always ask: how many of you have HR policies? Every hand will go up. Then I’ll ask—how many have finance policies? Every hand goes up again… because it’s the lifeblood of the organization.”

“Cyber is one of those things nowadays that is a part of doing business,” he continued. “You have to invest some money in cybersecurity because it’s the one thing that could stop your business just like that.”

What Makes SensCy Different

SensCy was built from the ground up to support the unique needs of SMOs—bringing cybersecurity expertise, practical tools, and strategic guidance to organizations that don’t have a CISO or internal cyber staff.

Rather than operating as just another outsourced vendor, SensCy acts as an extension of the leadership team, helping organizations reduce risk and create a security-minded culture—whether they have internal IT, a managed service provider, or no tech support at all.

Start with the SensCy Score™

Behen also introduced one of SensCy’s cornerstone offerings: the SensCy Score™.

“The SensCy Score is a proprietary algorithm that we built,” he said. “The easiest way to think about it is that it’s a credit score for cybersecurity. On a scale from 0–1000, we ask you 39 questions, and at the end of a 20- to 30-minute conversation, you get your SensCy Score—and you start to really understand your level of risk.”

It’s designed to make cyber risk more tangible—and help leaders prioritize their next steps without needing deep technical knowledge.

A Simple First Step

If there’s one takeaway Behen wanted to leave with viewers, it’s this: Don’t wait until after an attack to take cybersecurity seriously.

Visit SensCy.com to learn more or schedule your free assessment. The SensCy Score is a fast, accessible way to get a clear understanding of your current vulnerabilities—and a plan to fix them before it’s too late.