Four key predictions for enterprise security in 2016

[Audrey McNeil <audrey () riskbasedsecurity com>]

http://www.scmagazineuk.com/four-key-predictions-for-enterprise-security-in-2016/article/467526/

Hackers are increasingly sophisticated and driven, claiming successful
attacks on increasing numbers of high profile organisations and this is a
trend we can expect to see continue.

Enterprise security continues to change as the threats that businesses face
are constantly morphing. No organisation can afford to underestimate the
scale and potential cost of cyber-threats and security breaches. Nor can
organisations afford to underestimate the importance of anticipating and
being prepared for cyber-attacks.

2015 saw a series of high profile cyber-attacks that damaged many
organisations' reputations – and sometimes hit them financially too. The
target at the heart of many of these attacks is data, an asset that needs
to be protected at all times from theft, loss or breach. In previous years,
data was stored in a secure location with access only available through a
verified connection. But with cloud-based technologies becoming
increasingly popular due to flexibility, accessibility and other benefits,
now organisations also have to consider the security risks and
considerations to ensure that business-critical information is always
secure, regardless of where and how access to the information is needed.

It is refreshing to see that companies are taking cyber-security more
seriously, even if some of them are only doing so as a result of having
fallen victim to malicious attacks. The UK government, for example, has
pledged £1.9 billion investment in cyber-security over the next five years
and to “aggressively defend” public services from cyber-attacks.

The threats faced and intelligence needed in enterprise security is always
changing and the organisations and individuals that stay on top of these
trends will be best placed to handle whatever comes their way.

So, looking ahead into 2016, what are the key trends emerging for
enterprise security?

Unencrypted data to rise up the boardroom agenda

Last year saw several high profile data breaches that resulted in the
release of unencrypted sensitive information. With the European General
Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) as well as Safe Harbour well in the
spotlight, the topic of unencrypted data will continue to rise up the
boardroom and political agenda, with blame being apportioned to the parties
and service providers that fail to adequately encrypt their data.

Beyond 2016, we can expect organisations to be held more accountable when
unencrypted data falls into the wrong hands.

It also important not to underestimate the prevalence of distributed denial
of service (DDoS) attacks.  A few years ago there was a view that DDoS was
something that was a passing phase, yet businesses are still constantly
being tested with new attacks, which means an agile response is more
important than ever before.  And according to recent BT research, 59
percent of companies felt that the sophistication of DDoS threats is
increasing, with 40 percent of organisations saying they lacked an
effective DDoS response plan.

SMBs adopt Managed Security Services

Multinational contracts are no longer the preserve of enterprises alone –
SMBs are increasingly supplying contracts that require managed security
services built into their contracts. As a result, 2016 will start to see
the market for managed security services for SMBs to take off.

Single platforms for security

2016 will be the year of the single platform security solution. For many
years, the vision of major security vendors has been to create a single
security platform which can address all of a customer's security needs on
one platform. This year will see the first tangible deployments of this
fully-connected capability.

Customer expectations increasing

Customers are already growing accustomed to the real-time threat
intelligence. As the technology continues to proliferate in 2016, customers
will no longer be happy to accept generic security controls - they will
demand real-time threat intelligence that provides the best and most
relevant intelligence and actionable insights, when and where they need it.

With threats constantly evolving, businesses need to follow the latest
trends in enterprise security, and these days these threats are
increasingly more virtual than physical. To create the right kind of
fortress around your data and retain the trust of your customers, every
business will need to work with security partners who will probe defences,
uncover vulnerabilities and spot security gaps.

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