2019 Cybersecurity threats and opportunities

18 Feb

2019 is no longer a retype or an afterthought. It’s happening and with the new year comes a variety of new Cybersecurity threats and opportunities.

Our lives and lifestyles seem to become more digitised each year. You can do almost anything online, and you can control almost anything from your smartphone. Life has changed, and technology has become a part of our everyday existence. Because of this, the topic of Cybersecurity is (or should be) always a conversation piece and top of mind.

From the many surveys and reports released at the start of the year, it is apparent that cybersecurity is a number 1 risk factor for businesses as well as the public.

While it seems that most people are aware that there are risks, a very low percentage of businesses actually take the time to train and educate their staff on the topic. And when we say low, the stats show as little as just 11% of global organisations providing cybersecurity training to their people.

In an attempt to get business owners more actively interested in cybersecurity risks and educating employees, we take a look at the top cybersecurity threats and opportunities expected in 2019.

  • Increased sophistication

Cybercriminals have always been quite advanced in their methods, but it seems things might get even more complicated as criminals up their game. Already, 55% of all gross bank losses in South Africa relate back to cybercrime. Without educating staff and perhaps training highly-skilled cyber security expects to fight the war against cybercrime, this already shocking figure could rise.

  • The entire nation could be inconvenienced or negatively impacted

Cybercrime is no longer targeting account holders, investors, and business owners. Cyber criminals are turning online crime into a matter of national security. This year, cyber criminals plan to target entire electricity supply grids, government grant payment systems, banking systems, and even tax collection systems. This could affect you…and the entire economy!

Phishing attempts have been fairly effective to date, but now with social engineering improvements and better data correlation, phishing will be far easier to pull off. Prepare for some sleepless nights over this one – especially if you run a business with uneducated staff (when it comes to cybersecurity that is).

  • A new trend toward targeting vulnerable SMEs will be seen

Large enterprises have been a focus for quite some time and this year, cyber criminals are likely to target small to medium enterprises that haven’t felt too much at risk. SMEs typically have limited security systems. They also have access to cash flow. This makes them an attractive target for opportunistic criminals.

It’s not all bad news!

It’s easy to think that 2019 is going to bring about a plethora of new cybersecurity threats… because it will. But what’s the good news? Are there any opportunities for cyber security improvement? Yes! There most certainly are.

As new technologies emerge and cyber security professionals enhance their skills and tools, cyber criminals can expect to enter into a good fight. Machine learning and AI (Artificial Intelligence) is being designed to analyse data and search for potential breaches and vulnerabilities, which will make the task of cybersecurity for us mere mortals a great deal simpler and more effective.

Are you ready for 2019? You need to be!

If you need cybersecurity advice or products to protect your business or personal devices, give us a call or send us an email at Soteria Cloud today.

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