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Friday, March 29, 2024

Improving IT Security is a Top Priority in 2021

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According to many surveys, at least one-third of companies do not have an IT budget. After the global pandemic hit, people who saw IT as a threat to their business suddenly realised the importance of IT and the Internet. The reason, while on one end 2020 and 2021 saw a steep rise in the IT budget of some companies, on the other, it also saw a cut in the budget of some due to a sudden slowdown. According to 61% of companies, improving the IT security of their company is the top priority this year. On the other hand, about 30% did not seem concerned about adding more budget to their IT resources to meet market demands.

The COVID-19 pandemic that led to the economic slowdown has affected the business units throughout the enterprise adversely. Information technology and cyber security companies faced budget cuts and suspension due to uncertainties looming over their heads. They were forced to use tools that were undoubtedly not the best options for the new hurdles they faced.

IT spending decreased by nearly 10% in 2020 after years of expansion. While experts initially predicted expenses on IT security might reduce or remain steady in the financial year 2021, the more recent predictions expect to see the growth at a comparatively faster pace to cater to the security departments that need more financial support than before.

According to Gartner analysts, the positive growth rate indicates an uninterrupted demand for remote worker technologies and cloud security. In addition, the economic crisis during COVID-19, which forced companies to operate from home, has encouraged many organisations to now fully embrace remote work. The recent data reflects that by the end of 2021, 32% of all employees worldwide will represent remote workers, even after the pandemic has subsided. This is a massive surge from 17% of employees in 2019.

These growing numbers shifting to remote work culture presents a massive challenge for IT security, particularly if security budgets are cut.

Here are some pain areas:

  • Archaic and vulnerable VPN systems struggling under growing workloads
  • A never-ending swarm of new pandemic-themed phishing attempts
  • Aggravated bid to find and attack weak and unguarded vulnerable areas in remote work platforms
  • Renewed and stronger ransomware attacks

Even though the cybersecurity industry overcomes these hurdles, the resources invested in dealing with these might be bought at the cost of other critical issues. In this age of rapidly transforming digital world, the frequency of cyber-attacks has intensified in terms of magnitude and complexity. The reason, it is becoming more challenging than ever to take advantage of cybersecurity practices.

Cybersecurity is the protection of networks, devices, applications, and data from unauthorised access or illegal use. It ensures confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information. The objective of cyber-attacks is often to access, manipulate, or destroy sensitive information, extort money from users, or interrupt business processes or research programs by violating data security. Thus, they not only disrupt business operations but also cause damage to the national economy.

Conventional methods like anti-malware software installations are no longer sufficient to counter cyber threats. Hence, for timely predictions, detection, and prevention, and to avert cyber-criminals and protect IT premises, devices, and data from malicious cyberattacks, security experts and researchers in the IT sector are adopting more advanced artificial intelligence and machine learning. Therefore, businesses will be more anxious to spend on upgrading existing cybersecurity solutions by adopting cybersecurity measures and strategies in 2021, as we become increasingly dependent on technology than ever before.

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