As the business landscape becomes increasingly digital, the challenges of protecting critical assets and information have never been greater. Cybersecurity threats are evolving at an unprecedented pace, making it difficult for executive leadership teams to stay on top of the latest trends and best practices. The consequences of a data breach or cyber attack can be severe, including reputational damage, financial losses, and legal liabilities.
To give leadership teams peace of mind, it’s essential to put the right people in place. That’s where a Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) comes in. A skilled and experienced CISO can help ensure your organization is protected against evolving threats by developing and implementing a robust security program that meets regulatory and industry standards. By staying up-to-date on the latest trends and best practices, a CISO can help your organization build a strong and secure foundation for its security program.
At Fortify Experts, we understand the challenge of finding and hiring the right CISO. That’s why we regularly moderate CISO roundtable forums, where leading CISOs come together to discuss hot topics and share best practices. By engaging in these forums, CISOs gain valuable insights on the latest cybersecurity trends and best practices that can be shared with the entire leadership team.
Here are 10 key employment trends that every leader needs to be aware of for their organization’s security. By keeping these trends in mind and working with a skilled and experienced CISO, your organization can establish a strong and reliable security program to protect against evolving threats.
- Remote Work
The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically changed the security landscape. The number of people working from home tripled between 2019 and 2021, according to a report by the U.S. Census Bureau last year. With employees working from home, it’s important to ensure that their devices and networks are secure and that the necessary security measures are in place to prevent data breaches.
While many companies are now trying to bring employees back to the office, in some employment sectors like cybersecurity, employees will seek other employment options if they are forced back into the office.
- Cybersecurity Skills Shortage
The FBI last year reported an unprecedented increase in cyberattacks and malicious cyber activity. With the increasing number of cyberattacks, there is a shortage of skilled cybersecurity professionals, leading to high demand and competition for top talent. Organizations need to invest in employee training and development to ensure that their security teams are equipped with the latest skills and knowledge.
- Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
AI and machine learning are rapidly becoming essential tools in the fight against cybercrime. MIT scientists, for example, are looking at deep learning-driven malware prevention, hoping it could boost organizations in an innovation race against ransomware groups. With their ability to analyze vast amounts of data, these technologies can help organizations quickly identify and respond to threats in real time.
- Cloud Security
As more organizations move their data and applications to the cloud, cloud security has become a critical concern. Some of the biggest security breaches we’ve seen to date include Facebook sometime before August 2019 and, more recently, LinkedIn. In 2021, LinkedIn fell victim to a data scraping breach, affecting 700 million of its users. With the cloud becoming a prime target for cyberattacks, business leaders need to ensure that they are supporting the efforts to secure cloud environments.
- Regulatory Compliance:
A recent survey by Prosper Insights & Analytics suggested that 64.5% of consumers would like to see legislation enacted that prevents selling their personal, online, and mobile location data. As a result, organizations face increasing pressure to comply with privacy and security regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). Security leaders must stay up-to-date on the latest regulations and ensure that their organizations are in compliance with them.
- Insider Threats
The Cyber and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) defines insider threat as the threat that an insider will use their authorized access, wittingly or unwittingly, to do harm to an organization’s mission, resources, personnel, facilities, information, equipment, networks, or systems. The rise of remote work has increased the risk of insider threats, as employees may have less oversight and access to sensitive data from home. It’s important for security leaders to implement measures to detect and prevent insider threats, such as employee monitoring and regular security audits.
- Threat Intelligence
With the increasing number of cyberattacks, it’s more important than ever to stay ahead of the latest threats and vulnerabilities. Organizations need to invest in threat intelligence solutions to quickly identify new threats and respond to them before they cause harm. Each solution works differently and will have a different configuration of AI, machine learning, human expertise, and automation, according to Expert Insights.
- Zero Trust Security
The zero trust security model assumes that all network traffic is untrusted and requires verification before being granted access. This approach has become increasingly popular in recent years, providing a stronger security posture and reducing the risk of data breaches. U.S. President Joe Biden even recently issued an executive order to require all federal agencies to embrace zero trust security soon.
- Ransomware Attacks
In 2022, ransomware attacks impacted more than 200 larger organizations in the U.S. public sector in the government, educational, and healthcare verticals. Ransomware attacks are becoming more common and sophisticated, making it important for organizations to have strong backups and disaster recovery plans in place. Security leaders must ensure that their organizations have the necessary measures in place to prevent and respond to ransomware attacks.
- Quantum Computing
The development of quantum computing is expected to have significant implications for cryptography and cybersecurity. Though the technology doesn’t yet exist, U.S. national security officials expect quantum computing could usher in advances—and national security threats. Organizations need to start preparing for the impact of quantum computing and invest in research and development to ensure that their security posture remains strong in the face of this emerging threat.
Conclusion
As an executive leadership team, it is crucial to understand the current employment trends in the cybersecurity industry to safeguard your organization against growing cyber threats. One of the key measures you can take is to hire a skilled and experienced CISO who can lead your organization’s cybersecurity efforts. A CISO can implement and manage effective security programs, conduct risk assessments, ensure regulatory compliance, and stay up to date on the latest cybersecurity trends.
At Fortify Experts, we understand the challenge of hiring a qualified CISO and are committed to helping executive leadership teams find the right fit for their organization. Our CISO Forum is a valuable resource to help your team stay up to date on the latest cybersecurity trends and best practices, and we have developed a step-by-step guide on how to hire a great CISO who lasts. Reach out to us today to learn more about how we can help your organization find the right CISO to safeguard your business-critical data.
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