The cybersecurity spending for critical infrastructure will surge by $9 billion this year, with an average YOY growth of about 5 -10%, reveals ABI Research.
Cybersecurity expenditure in critical infrastructure (CI) across industries has been impacted amid the global pandemic – which put businesses to save while reshuffling with where to spend. This effect has been mostly as the increased demand for secure remote connectivity.
In its essence, the cybersecurity spending for critical infrastructure will surge by $9 billion in this digital era, reaching almost $105.99 billion in 2021- indicated a research study by ABI Research. This unprecedented time observes secure connectivity becoming a key area of focus.
Although the cybersecurity spending by various governments has not improved significantly, most of them maintained similar funding plans like previous years. Thus, the average YOY growth rate is anticipated to be around 5 -10%.
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The principal challenge for the CI operators currently is to ensure that systems and services keep functioning efficiently – even with the increased remote workforce globally. Thus, organizations are putting more emphasis on making sure that the infrastructure operations can be monitored securely and managed remotely by authorized staff.
Even there is no denying the fact that secure connectivity is a key priority, especially more after the SolarWinds Orion hack last year. It has conveyed a sharp focus to the need for enhanced vetting of services offered by third-party contractors as well as the remote update processes.
As Michela Menting, Digital Security Research Director at ABI Research, explains, “The implications for national security are significant, and critical infrastructure operators and governments worldwide are now re-evaluating and re-assessing the risks as they relate to remote management.”
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The impact of security spending is still the first and foremost aimed at IT networks, data security, and IT systems from a defensive perspective. This is where the primary risks are focused, and the security operators are intensely aware of the potential complications of such a breach.
On the other hand, increasing efforts are being placed on advanced security investments to prepare response mechanisms and secure operational technologies. This is primarily because the operators in various sectors go through digital transformation as well as start processing towards smart and connected IoT infrastructures.
Progress is, however, slow, with many sectors bound by privacy and regulations that are making it difficult for them to modify quickly. Moreover, new security processes demand time for testing and validation before becoming efficient for use – ensuring they do not compromise the integrity or functioning of current processes.
While cyber-security spending is essential in financial services, information and communication technologies (ICTs), and Defense, it still lags within the industrial sectors. The list includes energy, water, and waste management – since the risks related to physical threats are highly critical.
Michela Menting concluded by saying – “By and large, security spending in critical infrastructures is wide and varied, and diverges significantly among regions due to policy and regulation but is overall embracing cybersecurity much more holistically as connectivity and digitization continue to play increasing roles in everyday operations.”
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