Sony. Target. The DNC. In today’s increasingly digital world, a new fear creeps into our lives every time we see a news story about a company’s systems being hacked by Cyber Attackers.
Proprietary information, intellectual property, and even personal credit card information are at the mercy of the server security on which they are stored.
A recent study conducted by the nonprofit, independent association, ISACA, shows that cybersecurity has not only become a global concern for businesses, but that we may not be as prepared as we hope.
In the course of regular business, many companies conduct audits, inventory assessments, and OSHA compliance, but the growing threat to the bottom line has moved to the digital plane.
ISACA’s 2019 State of Cyber Security Study paints a troubling picture for current trends in workforce development, specifically in the positions created by major corporations to employ full-time cybersecurity experts who study prevention against cyber attackers.
Out of all the cybersecurity leaders who participated in the study, eighty percent of these experts believe their company will face a cyberattack in 2019. The problem is, the majority of these companies are not equipped to combat the range and intensity of modern cyber attackers.
Fifty-three percent of cybersecurity experts have seen a year-over-year cyberattack increase in 2016, but only thirty-one percent actually conduct routine, up-to-date security checks, while thirteen percent never conduct security checks at all.
Out of all the participants, sixteen percent do not even have security plans in place to deal with an attack.
The culmination of the data collected by the ISACA study shows a massive canyon between a company’s cybersecurity readiness and the prospective threats to their systems. But maybe more importantly, the results show an immediate need for corporate cybersecurity teams to be properly trained in both procedural security and emergency protocols.
According to participants of the ISACA survey, current trends in workforce development show that fifty-five percent of companies take at least three months to fill open cybersecurity positions.
Thirty-two percent of respondents could take six months or more to hire someone. This is compounded by reports that one in five organizations receive fewer than five applicants per open position, while only thirteen percent receive twenty or more.
Globally, companies are unable to fill current open positions in the following countries: twenty-seven percent of American companies, thirty percent of European companies, and twenty-two percent of Asian companies still have open cybersecurity positions.
The hiring process isn’t easy.
Many applicants must be certified for these positions, and many new applicants fresh out of college do not have the requisite experience. This creates a double-edged problem for the experts who participated in the study.
Thirty-seven experts say fewer than one in four candidates are qualified for cybersecurity positions. Fifty-five percent revealed that practical hands-on experience is the most important qualification, and close to seventy percent of companies require applicants to have security certifications prior to being hired.
On the positive side, sixty-five percent of organizations now employ a Chief Information Security Officer, a sizeable increase from previous years.
In this day and age, digital security consultants have become as necessary as financial audits and inventory evaluations.
Whether you are a single location small business owner, or an executive of a growing franchise, if you store sensitive information in the digital realm, you need to secure your information and implement emergency protocols just as much as you need power to turn on the lights.
The ISACA study is available on their website, and most metropolitan areas have seen a growth of trustworthy cybersecurity professionals.
Worrying about cyber attackers is a fear that can be avoided.
If you are not protected, ask someone you trust if they have any experience with local cybersecurity firms. A little research can go a long way as well, and Information is King—the more you understand how to prevent a cyberattack, the safer your company will be.
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