Abstract This study examines the economic consequences of ransomware for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) within digital business ecosystems. As SMEs increasingly rely on cloud platforms and shared IT infrastructure, ransomware has evolved into a systemic economic shock capable of cascading across the ecosystem. Existing literature often focuses on large organizations, leaving a gap regarding SME resource constraints and structural vulnerabilities, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). To address this, the study develops a framework based on the resource-based view (RBV) and dynamic capabilities. It explains why SMEs suffer disproportionately due to a lack of tangible resources and higher-order capabilities for threat monitoring and post-incident learning. Using reflexive thematic analysis on 88 sources, the study identifies five key themes: operational disruption, financial burden, reputational damage, business continuity fragility, and ecosystem coordination deficits. Each theme explores subthemes such as the gap between insured and uninsured firms and the discrepancy between individual and ecosystem-level resilience. The paper concludes with five propositions and differentiated implications for SME governance, insurers, and policymakers. It emphasizes that building resilience requires collective coordination rather than individual firm investments, which is critical in the CEE context where rapid digitalization has outpaced cybersecurity maturity. JEL Classification: L26, M15, D81, O33, G32.
Jakopec et al. (Sat,) studied this question.
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