WASHINGTON - The Federal Communications commission hosted a number of cybersecurity experts earlier this week, highlighting steps that small businesses can take to protect their customers?? personal information, National Journal reports.

Former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said that many small companies feel that protecting sensitive data is beyond their control and thus fail to take proper security measures.

"There??s a lot that businesses can do to protect themselves," he said. As part of the FCC??s roundtable discussion, it released a cybersecurity tip sheet for small businesses that includes details of training workers, securing Wi-Fi networks, using firewalls and controlling access to private information.

Ann Beauchesnes, vice president of national security and emergency preparedness for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said cybersecurity is not just an IT problem and that small businesses can and should take control of their networks.

"The message for small businesses is, yes, the Internet is a great tool, but you have to protect yourself," she said.

A 2010 Symantec study revealed that 74 percent of small and medium businesses were targeted by cyberattackers in the past year. And the FCC said U.S. companies lose about $8 billion annually to cyberattacks, with the average attack costing a small business $188,242.

"While it is critical to secure the government and large industry from cyber threats, it is vital that cybersecurity for small business be in this equation," said FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, who called cybersecurity "one of the biggest challenges our country faces."

"We??re talking about managing cyber-risk, not eliminating cyber-risk," Chertoff said. "You have to be realistic."