As 2018 draws to a close, it is time to get into the spirit of the New Year. It is a time of reflection and preparation for both individuals and businesses. In the field of cybersecurity, whose primary focus is improving internet security a bit every day, gaining insights on the threats and advancements in the field is important to consider.
The Current State of Cybersecurity
2018 was an overall positive year for cybersecurity. We saw the creation of the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) in 2017, which is a federally controlled body created for the purpose of improving awareness about cybersecurity across companies.
Technological investments grew as we saw improvements in the analysis of threats based on behavior. The analysis helps to reduce the insider threats and human errors which can cause ruin to a business.
The good thing is that many businesses have started to grasp the importance of cybersecurity and are paying close attention to it. While that may have been a big step, there is still a disconnect between the importance and the method of action towards that importance.
Cybersecurity Solutions
Cybersecurity is not a one size fits all solution. You should make sure that you create a security plan that meets all your needs.
According to a cybersecurity report, despite being the top tech priority in the past year, many companies are seeing their cybersecurity departments as an underperforming IT area. Only 22% of the survey sample indicated to cybersecurity being improved within their company. There are several reasons behind this, the most prominent ones include:
- Inappropriate funding
- Improvements in data visibility initiatives
- Improper staffing
- Lack of tools
The Need for Change
As discussed before, the major issue facing cybersecurity is the disconnect between business goals and IT activities.
While there might be managers and executives that agree on the improvement in cybersecurity for a business, the IT staff might say otherwise. After all, they are the ones in the field, not the managers. This helps to confirm the disconnect issue, suggesting a misunderstanding between the managers and the IT department.
AT&T’s report on cybersecurity challenges asked IT managers on the area of cybersecurity that needed to change in 2019, 63% of the responses were close to the following factors:
- Data privacy policies
- Mandates for security
- Proper legislation
Expectations for 2019
With respect to our research on cybersecurity improvements in 2019, we have come up with the following trends that will be common for the new year.
Automation in Cybersecurity
In the next year, we might see a rise in cybersecurity automation and data privacy. Automation and artificial intelligence will play a substantial role in covering privacy grounds for large-scale networks, reducing the burden on the IT staff.
Many cybersecurity companies are following the trend already, and have started to harness the power of automation. While that may be a good shift, many businesses are still skeptical about the use of AI and automation. The need is there, but it is not being realized by many.
There is no doubt that cybersecurity is a top focus for many businesses and investing in their data security and privacy can have long-term benefits. The best thing about automation is fraud detection which can be applied to every aspect of the business. For HR, using automated AI, you can detect the fraudulent applicants if you are planning to hire PHP programmers or mobile app designers, for example.
Mobile Devices and Cyber Threats
The number of mobile devices being used on an enterprise level is growing, which means that there are a number of security endpoints that need to be monitored.
As the number increases and multiple vendors have continued to provide disparate services, it becomes harder to detect and organize each endpoint in a unified cybersecurity solution.
In the most ideal of cases, cybersecurity leaders would like to see all the endpoints provided by a single vendor, making it easier to create a cybersecurity strategy. That new or “next-generation” universal vendor plan might come to fruition in the next year.
Data Privacy Regulations
You can expect to see more data privacy legislation being passed in 2019.
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which took effect in 2018, many U.S companies will be expected to adhere to the standards posed by GDPR.
The Security Talent Crisis
The lack of talent within the sphere of cybersecurity is going to be a major pain point in 2019. As cybercrime continues to rise, so does the demand for specialized professionals. Sadly, this demand has not been matched in 2018.
Crypto-jacking
Cryptocurrency sure had its fair share of ups and downs during 2018. Regardless of the phenomenon of virtual coins is on the rise, which makes it an easy target for cybercriminals, and hence crypto-jacking.
In 2018, we saw a major rise in crypto-jacking crimes, which are slowly becoming the cybercrime equivalent of ransomware.
It is expected that in 2019, the market should expect to see a rise in security measures against crypto-jacking attacks. We are already witnessing the rise of mining detectors being installed to identify unauthorized mining activities.
Cybersecurity service providers
Only time can tell the innovations cybersecurity will bring in 2019. One thing is for sure, however, that cybersecurity is an increasingly prevalent and complex field, and is becoming the norm for the business environment.
As we have previously discussed, however, IT professionals are facing several problems when it comes to the implementation of effective cybersecurity strategies. In the changing world of technologies and threats, businesses are finding it difficult to fund and harvest cybersecurity talent.
Because of these bottlenecks and unknowns, several businesses have shifted their cybersecurity to Managed Security Service Providers (MSSP). These providers are not just equipped with the latest in threat management tools, but they also have a deep understanding of the current playing field to work towards being ahead of the cybercriminals.
With an MSSP, several businesses can intelligently invest in the right collection of technologies to fight against cybercrime in 2019. With the help of such an MSSP, businesses work efficiently without worrying about cybercriminals breaching their data.
About the Author
Anne Taylor is a serial blogger with technical and business background. She loves writing about digital marketing, IT industry and workplace productivity. She is currently the content writer at Hire PHP Programmers.
