Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen announced that the Small Business Administration has granted the Maryland Department of Commerce nearly $1 million for a program to help small businesses avoid cyberattacks.
The money was awarded after the signing of President Joe Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in 2021.
The grant will “provide training, counseling, remediation and other tailored cybersecurity services to small businesses across the state.”
Both Maryland senators lauded the administration’s move to help small businesses.
“As ransomware and other cyberattacks become more prevalent, Senate Democrats and the Biden administration are taking action to expand access to cybersecurity resources for small businesses,” Cardin said in a statement.
The funding comes as state and local governments, as well as large and small businesses, have lost more than $6 billion to internet crime overall, according to the FBI. Those crimes include email compromises, tech support scams and data breaches.