INVESTIGATING THE IMPORTANCE OF CYBER SECURITY IN PROTECTING BUSINESS DATA: A STUDY ON FRAMEWORKS AND EMPLOYEE TRAINING

The study investigates the implementation of Cyber security frameworks and employee training in protecting sensitive business data from cyber threats. The objective was to assess the effectiveness of Cyber security frameworks such as NIST and ISO/IEC 27001 in reducing cyber incidents, and to evaluate the impact of employee training on mitigating risks. A mixed-method approach was used, involving surveys from 150 business owners and IT professionals, complemented by secondary data analysis from recent reports. The results show that businesses implementing structured frameworks experienced a 30% reduction in cyber incidents, and regular employee training reduced data breaches caused by human error by 35%. However, budget constraints remain a barrier, with many businesses allocating less than 5% of their IT budget to Cyber security. The study concludes that continued investment in Cyber security measures and training is essential for enhancing data protection.