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businessinfomag.uk
magazine
10
CYBER SECURITY
Vodafone is hoping to change
the way cyber-security products
are marketed and sold, following
research that highlights the link
between cyber security and business
success.
Its survey of more than 1,400
businesses reveals that 86% of high-
growth companies see information
security as an enabler of new business
opportunities, rather than simply as a
means of defence.
For example, IoT adopters questioned
for
Cyber Security: The Innovation
Accelerator
have seen a 24% increase
in financial benefits from having strong
cyber security, including improvements
to their business agility.
Amongst all respondents, good
cyber security was valued for a range of
benefits:
n
89% of businesses said that
improving cyber security would enhance
customer loyalty and trust.
n
90% said it would enhance their
reputation in the market, potentially
attracting new customers.
n
89% said they felt better information
security was a competitive differentiator
that would help them win customers.
The perceived benefits of cyber
security, allied to a heightened risk of
attack, are reflected in increased cyber
security budgets: 87% of businesses
expect to increase spending on cyber
security in the next three years; 10%
expect budgets to double.
That said, there is still a great deal
of confusion in the market: 41% of
security decision-makers are uncertain
where to get help in dealing with cyber
security challenges. This is especially
true of smaller business, 60% of which
feel badly informed about security.
Business Info
spoke to Andrzej
Kawalec, Vodafone Group’s Head of
Enterprise Cyber Security Strategy &
Innovation, about what the survey
reveals and how the results will shape
Vodafone’s approach to cyber security.
Instead of being paralysed by fear of data loss, it’s time to turn the risk
of cyber-crime into a business advantage, says Vodafone
Accentuate the positive
89% of
businesses said
that improving
cyber security
would enhance
customer
loyalty and
trust
Business Info (BI)
:
Why are businesses
unsure where to get help with their
cyber security?
Andrzej Kawalec (AK):
I think it's a
combination of things. There is an acute
lack of cyber-security capability in most
organisations and that is felt most
keenly in the SME space. Because the
vast majority of security services and
products, as they stand, are expert-to-
expert, they demand a high level of
technical and security competence and,
individually, address only part of the
problem.
Secondly, there is a lack of clear
responsibility. There’s a presumption
that users and the organisations
they represent have a duty of care
around data. There’s also a clear set of
responsibilities that apply to service
providers and organisations that supply
the fundamental underpinnings of the
data economy. There’s a further set
of responsibilities that government
and industry associations have around
standards and policy and regulation.
Unless you have an army of policy
gurus, a huge security organisation
and people who are technically very
adept at protecting and enabling your
information systems, you start to
become nervous about who you turn to
to address these issues.
Forty per cent of organisations are
unsure who can help them with their
security challenges and that rises to
60% in the SME space, because they
feel so keenly that lack of cyber-security
capability and experience.
BI
:
Do you think that the cyber-
security industry is failing its
customers?
AK:
I think there are a whole new set
of challenges and under-served sectors
where traditional security providers
are not really thinking about their
customers. The highly complex, capital-
intensive, expert security solutions and
systems that work perfectly well for a
large global multinational organisation
are not the bundled, clear package
solutions an SME or SOHO organisation
might need.
Our research also shows that
new business models are driving a
fundamental shift in how security
technologies are perceived. High growth
companies are using security to enable
new business opportunities, rather than
just to protect their assets. And that’s
how Vodafone thinks cyber-security
should be viewed.
You cannot be a high growth
company unless you focus on business
agility, productivity, customer loyalty,
reputation. Being able to charge a price
premium because of enhanced security
or being able to boost your reputation
and customer loyalty are outcomes
people wouldn’t naturally associate with
a security program. But we found they
are central to high growth companies.
To be a winner in the digital economy,
you've got to put security in place.
Andrzej Kawalec
