The world is far from safe; the level of cyber breaches has become extensive, given the global pandemic’s outreach. In a normal scenario, it’s been noted that the cost of preventing a cyber breach is way more economical than repairing the damages caused by the occurrence of such malicious events.
In order to stay in tune with the current security trends and further address the pandemic driven cyber breaches, it is important for organizations to stay abreast of the relevant changes. In this regard, organizations are rapidly shifting their attention towards modifying their cybersecurity budget.
Before we jump on to the dos and don’ts of an ideal budget, let’s quickly have a look at what a typical cybersecurity budget looks like.
Determining the structure of a typical cybersecurity Cost
As per a recent study conducted by Deloitte, it was found that financial service providers spent up to 10% of their budget on cybersecurity. Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s CEO, revealed that the tech conglomerate is slated to spend more than $1 billion/year, just in cybersecurity, for the forthcoming years.
Additionally, 70% of CISOs believe that their budgets for 2021 will shrink as compared to other years. With the sudden move to the work-from-home model, organizations are expecting higher costs pertaining to new security models, which are aimed at highlighting the absolute necessity of having the right parameters in place.
Even though none of these figures will help understand the true structure of a cybersecurity budget, it nevertheless provides a benchmark, which showcases how tech giants and financial companies are provisioning their budgets towards cybersecurity elements.
What factors to keep in mind while deciding on a cybersecurity budget for 2021?
- Threat analysis:
The year 2020 has ushered in a lot of uncertainty, especially with the pandemic making unprecedented changes in the very working culture within organizations. However, nonetheless, it is very difficult to predict the future, since organizations are beginning to take drastic steps to protect their employees from cyberthreats.With remote working becoming the new norm, organizations are beginning to take note of the imminent threats, and rapidly moving towards assessing the right tools to tackle any unforeseen threats. By conducting a relatively well-planned threat analysis, organizations need to be prepared for whatever uncertainty lies in the future and include it in their budgets.
- Staff Training Costs:
Before the onset of the pandemic, remote working might have been a bleak possibility. However, after the pandemic, remote working has become the new normal, and organizations are relying heavily on this working model to drive their employee’s performance and further, achieve organizational goals.The WFH model might seem like a cost-effective option for organizations, either in terms of associated cost benefits, employee centricity or working relationships. The reality is that organizations need to spend a lot of money on training their employees on the risks of cybersecurity and how to remain safe during remote working. - Incident Response:
Cybersecurity consultants often overlook real incidents which might occur during the lifetime of an organization’s cybercrime prevention endeavours. While prevention is definitely better than a cure, the cloud’s silver lining will not always work, especially when dealing with cybercrimes.Incident responses are a mandatory provision, and they should cater to the needs of meeting cyber threats, as and when they happen. Such provisions will not stall the data recovery procedures and often help a business recover without compromising on their immediate financial, customer and organizational needs. - Asset replacements/upgrades:
WFH requires a lot of technical assets, which need to be delivered to the employees, to ensure smooth functioning and facilitating an error-free work-from-home model. Old laptops might have out-of-date security software, which can’t protect employees from cyberthreats.In an attempt to devise cybercrime prevention programs, employees need to be equipped with up-to-date technological devices, which can further enhance productivity and prevent cyberattacks on organizations’ confidential data. There should be a sufficient provision within your 2021 budget to take such upgrades into consideration, keeping in mind the importance of using updated security software and other internal tools. - Insurance:
Cybersecurity insurance premiums on the rise for your organization? This does not come as a surprise, simply because remote employees are a risky asset for an organization. Insurance companies understand the risks associated with remote working and they are, in turn, charging organizations more to insure remote employees.On the contrary, if your organization does not have any cybersecurity insurance at all, it’s high time you should consider purchasing a fruitful insurance plan, which will help you mitigate any cyberthreats in the near future. Insurance plans of this shape and form will go a long way in helping maintain security during unprecedented times. - Security-as-a-Service (Saas):If the factors mentioned above are a lot to squeeze into this year’s cybersecurity budget allowances, you might want to consider opting for a Security-as-a-Service or a SaaS service provider. There are a lot of effective third-party service providers which take care of all cybersecurity needs and roll them into one single platform. Bid adieu to cyberthreats, and only concentrate on what’s important in 2021.If you do decide to go on this route, make sure you do some research before zeroing in on any single service provider. Such service providers should give utmost importance to cybersecurity and have adequate measures in place to protect all forms of the customer, employee and other confidential organizational data.
Conclusion:
All of the factors mentioned above are extremely important and need to have a place in your cybersecurity budget for 2021. While a few manipulations might still be possible in a few factors, any major challenges need to be addressed immediately. As an organization, sufficient direction needs to be provided to ensure maximum results are achieved, to have an uneventful, cyberattack free 2021.
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