Top Trends 2023 - Cybersecurity

In this digital-first age, when every piece of information can be tracked, monitored and stored. Businesses must secure their applications, data and online services. Unlike Ferris, a real hacker won’t just change the attendance records! They might steal the student’s social security numbers, give everyone an “F minus” grade or even wreck the system by injecting it with a virus. #EveryonesDayOff

Businesses have several assets to protect - financial intelligence, product data, Personally Identifiable Information (PII), etc., which puts their cybersecurity initiatives in the spotlight. With the rate of emerging threats, the biggest blunder any IT team can make is being unaware of the latest cyber threats. A robust vulnerability management software can help IT teams avoid these blunders. Last year, we covered major trends such as cybersecurity mesh, increasing attack surface and zero trust. To stay ready in 2023, here are the top 5 Cybersecurity Trends that will influence the digital world. Read on!
 

Trend 1: The Cloud Will Be Under Constant Threat

We bet you've heard of the cloud. More and more organizations are looking to establish operations on the cloud, which means it will be under a constant threat from bad actors. In 2023, businesses will focus on implementing more stringent cloud security policies and frameworks.

According to a study by O'Reilly Media, 48% of enterprises plan to migrate at least half of their applications to the cloud in 2023, while 20% intend to move all their applications to the cloud. As a result, we will see enhanced security measures that will continuously monitor and secure the cloud environment. Though cloud applications deployed by trusted enterprises such as Google, Microsoft and Amazon are quite secure, most businesses rely on diverse cloud platforms and applications. This will introduce some risks, that businesses need to address.

A major aspect of focus will be the fact that end users act as a significant source of cloud threats (48%). By clicking on malicious links or phishing emails, hackers can gain access to businesses' cloud environments. With the growing rate of businesses and organizations migrating to the cloud, the need for tighter cloud security is recognized by cybersecurity experts. They advise deploying advanced cyber threat countermeasures, innovative cloud protection strategies and predictive security for enterprise clouds.

TechDogs’ Opinion: There is no doubt that by 2023, most businesses will be interacting with the cloud in one way or another. Hence, ensuring cloud environments are robust and secure will be top-of-mind in 2023. Cybersecurity experts will focus on creating completely new methods of data encryption for cloud storage, which are unaffected by existing hacking techniques. You can also expect authorization, improved security protocols and real-time audit logging for cloud services. However, we, at TechDogs, believe that the biggest immunity that security providers can get is by making the end-user aware of the malicious activities and empowering them to prevent (and combat!) them when attacked. When nearly half of the sources of cloud threats are end-users, we think that’s the first nail to hit! #AwarenessIsPower
 

Trend 2: Mobiles Will Remain Every Hacker’s Playground

Did you know that there are roughly 5 billion mobile users globally? That's almost 66% of the worldwide population! Given the ubiquity and growth of smartphones, a concerning Cybersecurity Trend is a rise in mobile threats. Cybersecurity experts and business leaders will need to be more wary of mobile threats in 2023.

Cyber threats on mobile devices are growing rapidly, making our handheld devices a potential goldmine for hackers. There is a significant danger of hackers getting access to our photos, financial transactions, emails, personal messages, social media data, etc. This threat affects individuals and businesses alike as BYOD (bring your own device) policies have gained popularity since the pandemic. Hence, reducing the risk of smartphone viruses and malware will be a key area of work for cybersecurity experts in 2023.

While facial recognition and fingerprint scanner features are found on many smartphones, they are insufficient to guarantee complete data security. The majority of mobile threats operate discreetly in the background and are difficult to identify. The only solution to this is to create improved security measures for smartphone operating systems and applications. This transition will be one of the most significant trends for smartphone manufacturers and software developers in 2023.

TechDogs’ Opinion: While cybersecurity experts need to develop better measures to prevent mobile threats, it will not be enough. Once again, cybersecurity awareness will be equally essential to prevent threats such as identity theft, data breaches, etc. through mobile devices. We bet a lot of businesses would be adopting BYOD policy going forward (won’t you?). So, we recommend that the first thing to put in place is a robust network security protocol in your BYOD policy. You need to put in place norms like establishing firm password protocols, ensuring employees proactively report lost devices, getting employees up to speed on phishing scams and even investing in mobile antivirus and security applications in the coming years. #TheUltimateArsenal
 

Trend 3: Businesses Will Struggle Against Ransomware

Another important Cybersecurity Trend that we can't seem to ignore in 2023 is targeted ransomware. (Haven't we had enough already!) Businesses in developed nations that rely heavily on specific software for their daily activities will be extra cautious as ransomware targets will become more frequent this year. Hence, securing enterprise devices and networks against ransomware will be the focus of IT teams.

We're sure you remember the WannaCry attack on the National Health Service (NHS) hospitals in England in 2017. It showed the truly devastating potential of targeted ransomware – both financial and operational. The cyber-attack corrupted more than 70,000 medical devices, which made organizations across the globe take note of the risk posed by ransomware.

In essence, a ransomware attack threatens to release private business information online or brick (make inoperable) devices until a ransom is paid. It will continue to pose a significant risk to large enterprises and governments alike. However, a methodical and consistent approach to cybersecurity can minimize the risk of ransomware and extortion. Thus, IT professionals will concentrate on creating preventive measures and monitoring known software flaws that facilitate ransomware access. Businesses will also develop ways to track unauthorized access and affected devices in real time as part of their maturity strategy.

TechDogs’ Opinion: We feel that so far businesses have only dealt with the tip of the iceberg when it comes to ransomware threats and the worst is yet to come. Looking at past attacks and their patterns, we predict that ransomware threats will now be AI-enhanced (Artificial Intelligence). Another shocking observation that we’re expecting to be true in 2023 is the popularity of third-party vendors for ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) attacks. That means these miscreants now would have an influx of funding which would invariably increase the sophistication of malware.

To top it all, with increasing sophistication, better AI capabilities and new targets, it’s not difficult to conclude that the cost of ransomware in 2023 would also increase significantly. (Yes, it’s a scary world to be in!) Having said that, combating ransomware threats is simple – more frequent data backups is what we feel businesses should focus on. The more data you have backed up, the lesser threatened you are by these attacks! #BackupThatDataToday
 

Trend 4: Security Risks Will Slow Down IoT Adoption

IoT, or the Internet of Things, has been one of the rising stars in the technology world. It promises to redefine business operations by automating workflows and offering real-time process analytics. However, IoT adoption is being challenged by the numerous cybersecurity concerns around it – something that will be in the limelight in 2023.

IoT may be among the fastest-growing technologies of the past year. However, because it uses sensitive business data, cybersecurity experts predict that IoT data security will need to be strengthened in 2023. As the technology relies on communication between multiple devices on vast enterprise networks, it leaves them open to vulnerabilities such as cyber-attacks or unknown software bugs. IoT is coming up with novel applications in the business world, yet without data security, it will find slow adoption.

Cybersecurity experts feel that IoT security and data governance standards need time to catch up with the reality of the threats. Hence, significant innovation on this front is expected in 2023. IoT developers will start integrating built-in security mechanisms to protect against common threats such as Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) attacks, DDoS, brute-force password attacks, etc. Moreover, better data governance will lead to faster identification of high-value, high-risk IoT data.

TechDogs’ Opinion: Although IoT has found adoption in industries (a concept called Industrial IoT or IIoT), improved cybersecurity strategies will be necessary for the mass adoption of the technology in other sectors. Businesses with existing IoT deployments must focus on understanding what devices are being used within their networks, the data they work with and consider if those data assets pose any risk. Organizations should build on this to integrate security solutions wherever needed within their IoT networks. We also believe that businesses should conduct better IoT security testing before the live deployment of IoT devices. #Preparedness
 

Trend 5: Integration Of Automation Will Be Inevitable

Did you know that according to IBM, it took businesses an average of 287 days to identify a data breach? Pretty shocking, right? Hence, in 2023, several businesses will turn to automation to better manage their data security strategies.

Businesses have realized that automating certain aspects of their cybersecurity systems allows for more sophisticated approaches to data security. Given the massive volumes of data enterprises work with, replacing manual operations with automation will deliver quick and effective solutions to keep pace with cyber threats. According to a global security automation survey, 33.9% of organizations reported a high level of cybersecurity automation in 2021, compared to 9% in 2020. This number is expected to climb even higher by 2023.

Automation will be more important than ever for real-time threat detection. Integration of automation into cybersecurity strategies will be a significant trend as large, sophisticated enterprise infrastructures are often difficult to secure. Cybersecurity automation will allow for instant decision-making while taking into account thousands of variables. Risk assessments will be made in real time so IT teams and analysts can act right away. Cybersecurity leaders anticipate that automated processes will be integrated across numerous data security operations by 2023.

TechDogs’ Opinion: The volume of work that cybersecurity analysts must undertake will be reduced with the integration of automation into cybersecurity. It will enable insights, information and context to be generated and shared in real-time. We believe the result will be a highly effective security response, allowing businesses to secure complex and remote assets such as IoT and edge devices. Moreover, most hackers look for the "human factor" weaknesses to exploit (remember Trend 2?). Automation reduces that risk as it is not susceptible to phishing attempts. More power to AI and Automation!
 

It's A Secure Wrap!

The basic goal of cybersecurity is to provide the organization with the highest level of safety across all of its digital spaces; from networks to emails to remote devices. Yet, they must be aware of the risks and dangers to successfully defend against cyber-attacks. As a result, we examined the top 5 Cybersecurity Trends of 2023. Businesses need to focus on threats to the cloud and mobile environments more than ever, while ransomware will be a constant menace. Those looking towards IoT adoption need to ensure robust security before deployment. Finally, automation can be your best friend in achieving top-notch cybersecurity!