2021 was a banner year for cyber attacks. Compared to 2020, last year saw a 50% increase in attacks per week on corporate networks, even as the total cost of managing a cyber attack rose by 10%, according to IBM’s Cost of a Data Breach Report 2021. Add in the ongoing shift to hybrid work at scale and of course, there would be concern about the cyber resilience landscape in 2022.
Phishing. Ransomware. Business email compromise. The attacks aren’t new, but they’re certainly persistent. Consider phishing, which reached an all-time high in Q3 2021. Despite ongoing efforts to keep users off the hook, phishing attacks continue to wreak havoc on corporate systems.
The move to remote connections, meanwhile, also allowed ransomware to flourish, with each month in 2021 outpacing its 2020 counterpart for the total number of attacks. What’s more, compromises such as the Colonial Pipeline make it clear that even critical infrastructure isn’t safe from potential compromise.
For many enterprises, the result is a kind of defensive deja vu. Familiar frustrations continue to flourish even as the monetary and operational risks of data breaches continue to rise. And while it’s impossible to get rid of every attack vector, there are ways to limit the chance of compromise. Don’t let cyber resilience in 2022 stay static. Instead, adopt resilience resolutions that focus on pinpointing potential problems, leaving low-value frameworks behind and creating value with new security narratives.
Want to learn how? IBM identified six resolutions that can help boost cyber resilience for a safer 2022.