Last month, Thales released the global edition of its annual threat report, based on research and analysis by IDC. We were proud to sponsor the 2020 edition and what follows is a summary of the findings in part 1 of the report. Look out for our reviews of the rest of the report in future articles.
The digital dilemma
Digital transformation has dominated the business landscape for many years, but the pace of change has accelerated recently. Ubiquitous connectivity, cloud services and the Internet of Things have created a borderless infrastructure that delivers an abundance of convenience and productivity.
The ability to connect and collaborate anywhere, from any device, has transformed the way we work and play. However, the digital revolution is not without its risks. In a connected world, every device represents a point of weakness that can be exploited by bad actors.
Data security is high on the list of things that keep senior executives awake at night, yet there remains a disconnect between the perception of cybersecurity resilience and the reality. Despite the well-publicised impact of a data breach, IT security accounts for just 15% of overall IT spend.
Where’s your data at?
As organizations continue to digitize processes, sensitive data is moving away from core infrastructure to the very edge of the network. The report found that 78% of respondents store sensitive data in SaaS applications, with 43% facilitating mobile transactions. Cloud adoption has almost reached saturation point with 98% of organizations storing some of their data in the cloud, 54% of which is considered “sensitive”.
Data security landscape
Despite the sensitive nature of this data, and the potentially damaging results of a breach, levels of encryption remain worryingly low. According to the survey, only 57% of sensitive data stored in the cloud is protected by encryption. 100% of organizations surveyed stated at least some of their sensitive data in the cloud is not encrypted!
Why? Well, for 39% of respondents, the answer is complexity. Over 80% of global respondents are juggling more than one IaaS and PaaS vendor and 10% have over 100 different SaaS applications to contend with. Close behind is the false perception that security will have a negative impact on systems performance or user experience. For more on this, see our infographic on dispelling the myths of encryption.
A quantum of concern
The threat of the quantum computer has been downplayed by many, citing the extended development times for the technology as a reason to delay any proactive response. However, the significant advances in performance over the past 2 years have brought the technology into focus.
Over 90% now recognize that quantum computing poses a threat to future data security and 72% of respondents see it affecting their cryptographic operations in the next 5 years.
Useful links:
Download your copy of the 2020 Thales Data Threat Report
