Cyber attacks soar, investments on the rise: Study

Annual losses from cyberattacks averaged USD4.7 million in the last fiscal year — with more than one in 10 firms losing over USD10 million —according to a new report from The Cybersecurity Imperative, a global thought leadership program produced by independent researcher ESI ThoughtLab in conjunction with Willis Towers Watson and other organisations specialised in cybersecurity and risk management.

The study covered 467 firms across multiple industries in 17 countries revealing that companies worldwide expect to boost their cybersecurity investments by 34 percent in the next fiscal year, after raising them by 17 percent the previous year. About 12 percent of companies surveyed plan to bolster their cybersecurity investments by over 50 percent. Additionally, since last year, the percentage of companies seeing a significant impact from cybercriminal activities — such as installation of ransomware — has soared, from 57 to 71 percent.

The research shows that to combat evolving risks, companies need to take a proactive, multilayered defense. Firms are responding by allocating the biggest share of their budgets to technology, while seeking the right balance between investments in people and process. They are also focusing more on risk identification to address emerging vulnerabilities and are investing more in resilience to ensure they can respond quickly to successful attacks.