FEATURE : DATA SECURITY
A step towards tighter regulation of technology and telecoms could be a set of minimum service requirements , including a maximum amount of downtime allowed , time to recover data and applications , frequency of software upgrades .
Securing tech ’ s reputation
When we talk about downtime and other glitches which possibly threaten technology ’ s status as a utility , we turn to cybersecurity .
The growing importance of IT in the world ’ s day-to-day operations is an opportunity that cyberattackers will pull out all the stops to exploit .
Anything that is connected can be hacked . So , what does that mean in a world where everything is connected ? What it means is that cyberattacks have risen again in 2020 .
As cybersecurity becomes a utility that businesses need rather than a layer of IT they can choose , there is an opportunity to institute best practice across the board . Will cybersecurity training for office-based employees become mandatory , particularly with the rise of the remote workforce ?
Should all organizations publish a full Disaster Recovery plan , which details how they will recover data should it be lost or stolen ?
Going further , should personal data held by organizations be subject to a universal cybersecurity standard to ensure all citizens ’ data is protected to a satisfactory level ?
Dave Russell , Vice President of Enterprise Strategy , Veeam
Microsoft ’ s 2020 Digital Defense
Report , shows that Office 365 alone has blocked 1.6 billion URL-based email phishing threats in the past 12 months . Of 6 trillion messages scanned for viruses , 13 billion malicious emails were blocked . This supports Veeam ’ s own research , with IT leaders naming cyberthreats their biggest challenge in the next 12 months – above issues such as a shortage of skills and the ability to meet customer demands .
The penalties for businesses who fail to secure their systems and data are already high . As well as the financial cost of downtime , loss of confidence from customers and reputational damage leave a distasteful legacy , and something businesses can ’ t always recover from .
All of this once again points towards the utility-like status of technology – in this case with specific reference to cybersecurity and data protection . Perhaps the question needs to change from what security provider is a business using to what security protocols should businesses be required to implement based on the data they are processing ?
Like the on-going cybersecurity battle , the trend of technology permeating every aspect of our working and personal lives pre-dates 2021 .
However , this is undoubtedly a watershed moment for technology in the way it is perceived and the opportunity for the industry to demonstrate responsibility .
We have already seen the ‘ techlash ’ aimed at companies that fail to protect data . At the same time , business leaders and people across the world have come to realize that having access to the Internet is the new ‘ keeping the lights on ’.
Our economies , societies and lives are enriched by the ability to communicate , share content and complete transactions online .
The General Data Protection Regulation ( GDPR ), which applies to all EU citizens ’ data , goes some way to implementing a universal framework . But implementing cybersecurity measures is a choice rather than an enforced necessity .
The result is that technology ’ s role in the world has evolved into that of something which is expected to be ubiquitous , always-on and permanently available . The world simply will not accept ‘ this page cannot be displayed ’ anymore . p
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