The most recent Principal Financial Wellbeing Index found that more than 1 in 4 businesses surveyed experienced a cybersecurity attack in 2021 and among those attacks, more than half were successful. In about one-third of the attacks, ransomware was involved and hackers were able to access confidential data. The businesses’ systems were rendered unusable in […]

The U.S. Small Business Administration is launching the Cybersecurity for Small Business Pilot Program and allocating $3 million in new funding to help emerging small business owners develop their cybersecurity infrastructure, SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman announced Friday. “Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, small businesses have adopted technology at high rates to survive, operate and grow […]

The Identity Theft Resource Center released Wednesday a report showing the difficulties small businesses and entrepreneurs face after experiencing a cyber incident. The results of a survey of 417 business leaders and IT professionals in companies of 500 people or fewer revealed that about 60% of the small businesses surveyed have experienced at least one data breach, […]

America’s SBDC Iowa announced that Michael Wampler, regional director of the Northwest Iowa SBDC Spencer, is certified in the Certified Exit Planning Advisor program. The CEPA program is an executive MBA-style program that trains and certifies qualified professional advisers in the field of exit planning. The program focuses on enterprise value as well as a […]

The U.S. Small Business Administration will hold a live webinar today, Jan. 7, at noon to announce details about Ascent, a new online learning platform for women-owned small businesses. The new learning platform, which was first announced by the SBA in May 2019, was built to provide a modern e-learning experience for female business owners. […]

One month after releasing its findings on the digital safety net for small businesses, the Connected Commerce Council (3C) hosted Iowa businesses, community supporters and State Auditor Rob Sand in a webinar exploring how small businesses and individuals used technology tools to stay operating during the initial COVID-19 pandemic shutdown.  Moderated by 3C President Jake […]

A program to help small businesses keep their utilities on is being expanded to help more businesses avoid having their gas or electric service disconnected. The Iowa Economic Development Authority announced Friday that eligibility requirements for the Iowa Small Business Utility Disruption Prevention Program has been expanded to include utility assistance for eligible small businesses […]

West Des Moines-based payment processing company VizyPay is using its Look Local First initiative to help local businesses rebuild after pandemic-related disruption with free digital marketing efforts, VizyPay announced this week. Look Local First initially launched in 2019 to help small businesses implement a full digital marketing strategy with social media giveaways; the team has […]

A new analysis by Amazon finds that Iowa leads the nation in the per-capita number of small and medium-sized businesses selling through the tech giant’s online platform, reports the Corridor Business Journal. Iowa is home to nearly 10,000 small and medium-sized sellers on Amazon, earning it the top ranking for the most digital entrepreneurs per capita. […]

The East Polk Innovation Collaborative, Facebook and other local partners have established the East Polk County Relief Fund for local COVID-19 relief, supported by an initial $350,000 contribution by Facebook, the company announced this week. The fund will designate $250,000 for small business support and $100,000 for nonprofit and individual assistance. Small businesses and nonprofits […]