IBM Security and Ponemon Institute are pleased to release the 2019 Cost of a Data Breach Report. Based on in-depth interviews with more than 500 companies around the world who experienced a data breach between July 2018 and April 2019, the analysis in this research study takes into account hundreds of cost factors, from legal, regulatory and technical activities, to loss of brand equity, customer turnover, and the drain on employee productivity.

Now in the 14th year of the Cost of a Data Breach Report, we included historical data showing trends for a range of metrics over a period of several years. The research continues to evolve, with consideration for the changing nature of information technology, data regulation, and security tools and processes. Above all, this report shows IT professionals, business leaders, researchers and the broader security community that, although the consequences of data breaches are severe, there are concrete ways organizations can mitigate costs and improve overall security posture.