Cybersecurity remains a front-burner issue for business leaders overseeing operations, both big and small. Cyberattacks happen more frequently than ever before, and the technology used is becoming more advanced. Building a robust defense is critical to success.
Having people in place with the expertise to build that defense is a priority for businesses, government agencies and nonprofits. Any organization with vital records and company infrastructure online is vulnerable.
The costs associated with cyberattacks have increased. According to numbers compiled by IBM, the cost of a data breach increased 12% in the past five years. The average cost is now $3.92 million, which includes digital forensics and legal costs, the rapid investment in shoring up security and potential government penalties and compensation costs.
Organizations continue to search for those who have earned a bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity and developed the skills necessary to provide reliable information security. But even with those skills, cybersecurity experts must also stay on top of the latest trends in the industry.
The four areas listed below are expected to move to the forefront regarding cybersecurity in the next few years. They all demonstrate the need for better protection against cyber criminals, as well as having people with expertise to put these protection plans into place.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning play an increasing role in cybersecurity because of the speed at which they can collect and analyze data. AI tools specifically designed to scan systems for potential cybersecurity threats can do the job much faster than people. These programs are sophisticated enough to spot many different signs of potential trouble, including variants of malware or employees clicking on phishing links in their email.
Another innovative breakthrough that uses AI is biometric logins that require a fingerprint, retina or palm scan to access a system. Through natural language processing, AI software can also scan media articles, academic papers and other sources to quickly gather the latest information on cybersecurity issues, “learning” what has become a threat.
The drawback? To build and maintain cybersecurity AI systems, “Companies would require an immense amount of resources including memory, data and computing power,” according to CPO. The resources to accomplish that task, as well as gather the data such as malware codes needed to teach AI systems what to target, are beyond the reach of many organizations.
Cloud Security
Most companies have moved important records and even significant chunks of their business infrastructure, such as sales data and financial records, into the cloud. That’s made cloud security more crucial than ever. Innovation also has led to more issues. For example, some companies have a “bring your own device” policy that allows employees access to work systems through their own devices, such as smartphones and tablets. These policies increase productivity but also offer more vulnerabilities for cyber criminals to exploit.
With global spending on cloud computing expected to approach $623 billion by 2025, according to CIO, those vulnerabilities can only multiply. Hackers also are turning some organization’s cybersecurity against themselves. For example, a 2019 attack on Amazon lasted for eight hours as the attacker’s program convinced the retail giant’s security systems to treat legitimate buyers as malicious.
The Internet of Things
The Internet of Things (IoT) allows tracking of and communication between objects in the real world. Examples include medical devices worn by patients that transmit information to clinicians and telematics devices placed on commercial vehicles that transmit information to fleet managers. Other examples include consumer products such as IoT-connected doorbells, thermostats and even baby clothes!
While offering a way to gather and transmit real-world data, IoT also has provided a fresh target for hackers. And those targets are only expected to multiply. By 2025, about 75 billion IoT devices are expected to be in use, some transmitting information valuable for hackers (including medical records and financial information).
A recent report in CISO Mag ran down some of the scariest incidents. They included:
- Home security systems that randomly showed one person video from another person’s home
- Hackers stalking your movements from a camera and microphone inside smart TVs
- Smart home systems that allowed hackers to play weird music and speak to residents inside their own home (they had hacked the home’s WiFi system)
- The theft of credit card and other information through coffee machines and printers connected to the internet
- Fax machines, which apparently are still in use in some places, also are vulnerable to attack when connected to computer systems
IoT security alone could employ thousands of recent cybersecurity graduates as organizations race to catch up with hackers.
Ransomware
While all of these trends are troublesome, ransomware has received the most attention. That’s for a good reason. The average cost to recover from a ransomware attack has now reached $84,000, according to Forbes. No one expects that number to go anywhere but up if the pace of attacks continues.
Ransomware is a particularly sophisticated form of malware. It’s often delivered to someone through an attachment in an email. Once opened, the malware encrypts files and documents on a computer — or even an entire network of computers, including the server. The attackers then demand a payment in exchange for allowing you to regain access to your files.
Guarding against ransomware attacks requires investing in high-quality firewall hardware, anti-malware software and a reliable backup system. Perhaps most importantly, it involves training staff to identify suspicious emails and never open attachments from unknown senders.