Print.IT Reseller - issue 88

BULLETIN Paying to get data restored According to new research by ThycoticCentrify, ransomware has become a preferred method for cyber-attacks, with nearly two out of three companies (64%) surveyed admitting to be victims in the last 12 months. The report, entitled: 2021 State of Ransomware Survey & Report: Preventing and Mitigating the Skyrocketing Costs and Impacts of Ransomware Attacks , based on responses from 300 US-based IT business decision-makers revealed that more than four out of five (83%) ransomware attack victims felt they had no choice but to pay ransom demands to restore their data. www.thycotic.com IT destruction Companies have major room for improvement on their audit trails for data removal and IT destruction and recycling, research by DSA Connect shows. More than one in four (27%) of IT directors admit the standard of audit trails at their employers is poor or average. 61% say a lot of IT destruction and recycling is left to outside companies which are not properly trained while 59% admit their in-house teams are not sufficiently experienced. Nearly half of respondents admit budgets for IT destruction and disposal are not big enough while 18% of IT Directors claim senior management is not interested enough in the issue. www.dsa-connect.co.uk Remote working a cyber risk Tenable has published results of a study that found 72% of UK organisations attribute recent business-impacting cyber- attacks to vulnerabilities in technology put in place during the pandemic, while 68% suffered attacks that targeted remote workers. The data is drawn from Beyond Boundaries: The Future of Cybersecurity in the New World of Work , a commissioned study of more than 1,300 security leaders, business executives and remote employees, conducted by Forrester Consulting. 70% of UK organisations now support remote employees, compared to 31% prior to the pandemic, while 86% plan to permanently adopt a remote working policy or have already done so. But embracing this new world of work has opened organisations to new and unmanaged cyber risk. 78% of security and business leaders believe their organisation is more exposed to risk as a result of remote work and just under half (48%) of firms are adequately prepared to support hybrid working models from a security standpoint. Hybrid work models and a digital-first economy have brought cybersecurity front and centre as a critical investment that can make or break short- and long-term business strategies. To address this demand, three quarters of UK security leaders plan to increase their network security investments over the next 12 to 24 months; 73% will increase spend on cloud security; 66% plan to spend more on vulnerability management. www.tenable.com Taking back control of data New research from eyeo has found that mobile users want more control over their data when browsing the internet on their phone. This is encapsulated in the finding that 83% of users would change their mobile browser if it offered them this greater level of control. The survey results confirm that users want more control over their browsing experience and suggest how telco providers can help achieve this. 84% of users believe that they should be paid in exchange for the data gathered on them through trackers such as cookies, which shows that data should only be monetised by companies if users get something in return. Users also want to regain control of their everyday browsing experience. When asked what they found most annoying about their mobile browsing experience, 37% of users highlighted intrusive ads as their biggest aggravation, which was followed by cookie consent requests at 23%, and being tracked by apps at 18%. The data also suggests that telcos can play a leading role in helping give users more control over their online experience. Most subscribers surveyed have a strong relationship with their telco provider, exemplified by the fact that 62% have used apps supplied by their telco provider. Crucially, 80% report a positive experience when engaging with such apps. www.eyeo.com The state of network security A new report from Barracuda: The state of network security in 2021 has revealed that organisations are struggling with network breaches, ransomware attacks, remote work, and more. Research found that more than two-thirds (70%) of UK businesses have been the victim of a successful network security attack in the last year, and 65% have been the victim of at least one ransomware attack in the last 12 months. 80% of respondents with company-issued devices share their home internet connection with other members of their household, posing a significant security risk. Furthermore, one third of UK companies do not issue company devices, and instead operated a bring your own device policy, and an additional 43% of companies do issue company devices, but still allow BYOD for some use cases such as email. Remote working is set to continue, with over nine in 10 IT decision-makers revealing that the majority of their workforce are likely to continue remote working for at least one or two days a week. 34% will even remain working from a remote environment on a full time basis. To help overcome work-from-home challenges, the report revealed that Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) technologies are being prioritised to prevent security breaches. www.barracuda.com 01732 759725 4