Today, security is a paramount and urgent business concern. More and more products and services connect individuals to the network in increasing numbers and with greater ease. Online transactions are commonplace. Network traffic of vast amounts of data occurs non-stop worldwide.
This increasing business interconnectivity has changed the nature of security, the underlying threats, and the countermeasures to address the risks.
Security breaches have evolved from being the experiments of amateur hackers to being information theft by professional operations. Selling stolen information and ransoming access are highly lucrative. Cybercrime is big business.
Cyber attacks cost businesses $400 to $500 billion each year. The following are just some of the ways that businesses are damaged:
In the short term, direct loss of customer, employee, and company data and digital assets.
In the longer term, negative branding and further loss of customer trust. Companies that have been penetrated are at a competitive disadvantage.
Exposure to lawsuits, penalties, and other legal liabilities.
The frequency of reported attacks shows the widening reach of cyber criminal activity that affects all industries across geographies. Security experts estimate that 95% of all customers have been breached, although they might not know it yet.
Increasingly, companies must satisfy new security-related regulations such as the following:
Security measures as a requirement for conducting business.
Stiff penalties for security failures.
Required response times in the event of a breach.