What has 2025 shown us? And what is in store for 2026?
Last year marked a turning point for business resilience. Cybersecurity breaches, extreme weather events, and IT failures dominated headlines, exposing vulnerabilities across industries and underscoring the urgent need for robust risk management strategies.
Cybersecurity: A Year Dominated by Ransomware
Cyber attacks surged in 2025, with the Cyber Security Breaches Survey reporting that 4 in 10 businesses experienced some form of breach. The threat in the digital world is evolving rapidly, accelerated by the advancements of artificial intelligence — and it’s not slowing down.
Case Examples:
- M&S: In May, a ransomware attack forced the retailer to halt online orders for over six weeks. Hackers stole customer data, damaging trust and costing the company £324 million in lost sales.
- Co-op: A similar attack crippled IT systems, leaving shelves empty nationwide. Customer data was compromised, and the financial impact reached £206 million.
- JLR: The costliest cyber-attack in UK history affected over 5,000 businesses. Full recovery took five months, highlighting the scale of disruption.
Cyber resilience is no longer optional. Businesses and organisations must invest in advanced security measures, rapid response capabilities, and employee awareness programs to stay ahead of evolving threats.
Extreme Weather: The New Normal for Disruption?
For the first time since 2017, extreme weather ranked as the leading cause of disruption in the BCI Horizon Scan Report 2025. It also emerged as the second-highest risk for 2026, signalling an urgent need for climate resilience. The World Economic Forum stated from climate-based risks, earnings of corporate businesses could be cut by approximately 7% by 2035.
Case Examples:
- Leicestershire and Lincolnshire: Early in 2025 these two counties declared major incidents after severe flooding and snow caused chaos across communities. Over 300 flood alerts were issued sending communities into panic.
- Storm Bram: Thousands were without power when Storm Bram brought 90mph winds and flooding across parts of the UK. The Met office warned of “danger to life”. Companies without robust continuity plans faced longer recovery periods and local authorities struggled to reach stranded communities.
- A record-breaking summer: 2025 was confirmed to be the UK’s warmest and sunniest year on record – breaking weather records seems to have become the new normal. The risk to communities will only intensify, such as infrastructure failures, fires, and droughts – heightening the chance of major operational disruptions or declaration of major incidents.
We can’t control the weather—but we can control how we prepare. In 2025, 36% of organisations lacked comprehensive plans for extreme weather, and 57% had not conducted risk assessments to understand potential threats (BCI Horizon Scan Report 2025). A statistic that needs to change.
What does this mean for 2026?
Risks and threats to organisations are only continuing to grow and become more complex. AI is only going to continue to enhance. The climate is continuing to change and intensify. The idea that these risks cannot be mitigated should be left in 2025.
2026 – let’s be proactive, take the necessary steps, and get ahead. By preparing continuity plans, training, and practicing scenarios is the way to build resilience and minimise threats.
2026 has already shown the world that the threat is only going to continue. 14 days in and…:
- Aberdeenshire Council has declared a major incident after days of heavy snow.
- Major incident declared in Kent and Sussex due to tens of thousands being left without water.
- European Space Agency fell victim to a cyber-attack and has had 200GB of data stolen.
The RAB Team is here to help and here are just some of the ways we can support your organisation to be prepared for 2026’s biggest threats:
- Business Continuity Training
- Business Continuity Support
- Emergency Exercising
- Responder Training
- Emergency Planning
Please contact us if you would like to explore any of these services. Use the Get in Touch option on the website, or email enquiries@rabconsultants.co.uk or call our head office in Lichfield on 0330 223 6475. Let’s build resilience together.