The World Economic Forum (WSEF) has listed cybersecurity as one of the greatest threats to businesses around the world in its Global Risks Report. In its third appearance as a top area of concern, cybersecurity “finds itself ranked fairly high, above food crises, interstate conflict, terrorist attacks and spread of infection diseases but below climate change, fiscal crises and mass migration.” While cyber-attacks rank in the top ten threats in 140 economies, the United States has the most to be concerned about due to the nasty effects these attacks can have on our constantly evolving economy. Additionally, as the world becomes more dependent on connected technologies, this ever-increasing risk will certainly spread to all corners of the world.
According to the report, there are two specific areas of concern that organizations tend to overlook. The first concern relates to the “mobile internet” and inadequate cybersecurity on our mobile devices. The second relates to “machine-to-machine connections” and claims it is pivotal “to integrate physical and cyber management, strengthen resilience leadership and organizational and business processes and leverage supporting technologies.” In the report, Tim Grieveson, Hewlett Packard’s chief cyber strategist, explains “businesses need to understand that it’s not a matter of whether they will be breached, but a matter of when. As such, security professionals need to start thinking like an adversary to identify what data is most likely to be targeted and what tools are most likely to be used. Make the assumption you’re going to be breached or have been but don’t know about it yet, and look at how you can disrupt and manage the breach when it inevitably occurs.”