Board level executives assume they will never face a cyberattack: Report

The top frustration expressed by cybersecurity professionals is that their board level executives assume they will never face a cyberattack and cybersecurity personnel over exaggerate these threats and issues, stated a study by Sophos.

The study reveals a lack of boardroom awareness of cybersecurity, and a broad assumption from executives that their company will never get attacked, despite rising ransomware incidences, impact and cost.  

Despite cybersecurity expenditure and self-assessed maturity increasing in Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ) organisations over the past 12 months, the report found that in India only 61 per cent of companies surveyed believe their board truly understands cybersecurity. 

Moreover, 86 per cent of respondents also believe cybersecurity vendors do not provide them with the information they need to help educate executives, and 93 per cent of companies agree their biggest security challenge in the next 24 months will be the awareness and education of employees and leadership.  

According to the study, skills shortage continues to be a key focus area in organisations across the region. Also, 75 per cent of firms surveyed expect to have some problems with recruiting cybersecurity employees over the coming 24 months; 29 per cent expect to face a major challenge. 

The survey also highlights that cybersecurity professionals face a variety of challenges and frustrations in their roles, most of which are related to awareness, perception, messaging, and education.