At risk?: Equifax hack has businesses uneasy about security

The Equifax breach is reminding small business owners that they may be vulnerable to cybercriminals.

Companies that provide security and other technology services to small businesses say they've had an increase in calls from customers since Equifax revealed on Sept. 7 that the personal information of 143 million Americans had been exposed.

The hack galvanized some owners into dealing with long-delayed issues.

Small businesses often lag behind big companies in data security, not believing they might be targets. But 61 percent of the victims of breaches in 2016 were businesses with fewer than 1,000 employees, according to a Verizon survey. And experts say small companies are being targeted more because they don't have the sophisticated defenses that big corporations do.