The ransomware epidemic hitting UK businesses is leading many to increase their prices, adding to already high inflation, new data from Veeam has warned.

The data protection firm surveyed 100 directors of UK businesses with over 500 employees that had been successfully compromised at least once by ransomware in the past 18 months.

It found that large companies had to increase costs to customers by an average of 17% following an attack. Over a fifth (22%) of respondents said they increased prices by 21-30%, while 6% increased prices by 31-40%. Just 1% of companies were able to keep prices the same following a ransomware compromise.

Inflation in the UK is among the highest in Europe, standing at 4.6% in October.

Veeam claimed that three-quarters (76%) of UK firms fell victim to a ransomware attack last year.

Read more on ransomware: UK Logistics Firm Forced to Close After Ransomware Breach

However, it’s not just prices that are being impacted by these breaches. Veeam also found that 78% of UK businesses reduced staff numbers following an incident, with nearly half (47%) doing so in the first six months.

Breached organizations claimed they had to cut operating costs by an average of 17%, with 11% of respondents doing so by 21% or more.

Directors are concerned that even worse may befall their business if they suffer another serious ransomware attack. Some 70% claimed their business would have to close if they were hit with another security breach, and even more (78%) revealed that a previous organization they worked for went bust within a year of an attack.

It took responding organizations on average two months to recover from a ransomware attack, with 16% taking between three and six months.

“Ransomware has become an unfortunate part of the business landscape, but despite the worrying nature of these findings, it doesn’t have to equate to business closure or rising costs,” argued Veeam’s VP of UK and Ireland, Dan Middleton.

“Understanding that ransomware and other data disruptions are inevitable will help businesses take the necessary steps – such as investing in immutable backups – to recover their data quickly, safely and reliably when needed. Achieving this level of radical resilience will remove the need to make impossible choices such as increasing costs or layoffs.”