Security Spend Is On The Rise – And For Good Reason!
Back in 2010, we saw near record lows for IT security spending among many US companies. Now, the CISO office is back in business, with an eye toward business-enabling policies that safeguard company and customer data from the latest threats.
Research firm Gartner projects IT security spending to increase from $60 billion this year to $86 billion in 2016. According to Gartner, global IT security spending increased close to 8.4 percent this year and that trend is expected to continue through the next four years.
A spike in data breaches and other data retention issues have forced companies to increase efforts to create and deploy more effective security intelligence software and solutions. Experts insist that more sophisticated malicious code and advanced persistent threats are the primary reasons for the rise in IT security spending, with security information and event management and managed security services set to take the top three spend categories.
Other research shows that security is the most important concern for businesses who have enacted bring your own device (BYOD) policy to govern smartphone and tablet use in the workplace. A Holger Schulze study found that 70 percent of IT managers say security is the most important criterion for determining the success of a BYOD initiative.
“What is concerning to me is the lack of security that is actively implemented, according to survey respondents,” Lumension vice president of solution marketing Paul Zimski told Dark Reading. “Over a third of organizations have no security at all, and most are relying on just encryption.”
Vivo CEO, Marilyn Weinstein, is often reminding clients “It is so much more expensive to bounce back from a security breach and the resulting damage to your brand than it is to proactively put the right personnel and safeguards in place.” Her recommendations?
- Vulnerability Assessment. Identify risks and improve your overall security posture while maximizing business results.
- Security Portfolio Assessment. Many organizations have hundreds of applications, but little insight into which put their critical data, operations and assets at the most risk. Create a risk ranking framework that allows you to better allocate your application security budget and resources.
- Architecture & Design. Develop consistent and appropriate systems across your enterprise with the ability to work together, collaborate, or integrate where and when required.
- Compliance Remediation. Create plans to address issues arising from internal and external audits.
Security is everybody’s business. Make sure yours is at a standard that protects your proprietary information and equipment, products, employees, and customers.
