Research: Cybersecurity Success Hinges on Full Organizational Support

  • Sep 30, 2024

Cybersecurity is the top technology priority for the vast majority of organizations, but moving from aspiration to reality requires a top-to-bottom commitment that many companies have yet to make, according to new research released today by CompTIA, the nonprofit association for the technology industry and workforce.

CompTIA’s “State of Cybersecurity 2025” report reveals that cybersecurity is a primary or secondary priority for 98% of organizations. Yet only 25% of survey respondents feel that the overall direction of cybersecurity is improving dramatically, and only 22% characterize their organization’s cybersecurity efforts as completely satisfactory. Nearly 1,200 business and IT professionals across seven global regions were surveyed.

“Something is missing, either in the approach organizations are taking or in their expectations around what ideal cybersecurity would look like,” said Seth Robinson, vice president, industry research, CompTIA.

Cybersecurity’s unique status as a business imperative at all organizational levels – staff, management, executives and governing bodies – may be the reason of the disconnect.

“Gone are the days when achieving cybersecurity improvement was a simple matter of purchasing updated technology,” Robinson explained. “Businesses must have ongoing discussions around their cybersecurity technology stack, processes that ensure protection of assets and an organizational structure that provides cutting-edge expertise.”

Cybersecurity expertise needed

The report identifies a growing need to build multiple layers of cybersecurity expertise. Among North American companies, 53% are considering new hiring as an option. An even greater percentage (56%) plan to pursue training for their current cybersecurity workforce, and 42% plan to offer cybersecurity certifications as a way of establishing core concepts within the team and extending skillsets into emerging focus areas.

Hiring and training require a financial commitment, though, and that remains a challenge for some. While a significant majority of respondents state that cybersecurity is a high priority at their firm, only 49% feel that it is relatively easy to procure funds for cybersecurity activities or that budgets are increasing.

“Developing skills is the most significant action companies may take in improving efficiency, but there are other options as well,” Robinson noted. “Increasing visibility and awareness among senior executives, establishing organizational imperatives and metrics and building policies that drive employee behavior will create a culture of cybersecurity.”

AI and cybersecurity

Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to accelerate, automate and complicate cybersecurity efforts. North American companies are evenly split between an emphasis on using AI internally to improve their defense and on learning about new forms of AI-enabled attacks. Current AI-enabled use cases include monitoring network traffic, generating defense tests and predicting future breaches.

CompTIA’s “State of Cybersecurity 2025” report is available at https://www.comptia.org/content/research/cybersecurity-trends-research.

Featured

  • Video Surveillance Trends to Watch

    With more organizations adding newer capabilities to their surveillance systems, it’s always important to remember the “basics” of system configuration and deployment, as well as the topline benefits of continually emerging technologies like AI and the cloud. Read Now

  • New Report Reveals Top Trends Transforming Access Controller Technology

    Mercury Security, a provider in access control hardware and open platform solutions, has published its Trends in Access Controllers Report, based on a survey of over 450 security professionals across North America and Europe. The findings highlight the controller’s vital role in a physical access control system (PACS), where the device not only enforces access policies but also connects with readers to verify user credentials—ranging from ID badges to biometrics and mobile identities. With 72% of respondents identifying the controller as a critical or important factor in PACS design, the report underscores how the choice of controller platform has become a strategic decision for today’s security leaders. Read Now

  • Overwhelming Majority of CISOs Anticipate Surge in Cyber Attacks Over the Next Three Years

    An overwhelming 98% of chief information security officers (CISOs) expect a surge in cyber attacks over the next three years as organizations face an increasingly complex and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven digital threat landscape. This is according to new research conducted among 300 CISOs, chief information officers (CIOs), and senior IT professionals by CSC1, the leading provider of enterprise-class domain and domain name system (DNS) security. Read Now

  • ASIS International Introduces New ANSI-Approved Investigations Standard

    • Guard Services

  • Cloud Security Alliance Brings AI-Assisted Auditing to Cloud Computing

    The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining standards, certifications, and best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment, today introduced an innovative addition to its suite of Security, Trust, Assurance and Risk (STAR) Registry assessments with the launch of Valid-AI-ted, an AI-powered, automated validation system. The new tool provides an automated quality check of assurance information of STAR Level 1 self-assessments using state-of-the-art LLM technology. Read Now

Most   Popular

New Products

  • Unified VMS

    AxxonSoft introduces version 2.0 of the Axxon One VMS. The new release features integrations with various physical security systems, making Axxon One a unified VMS. Other enhancements include new AI video analytics and intelligent search functions, hardened cybersecurity, usability and performance improvements, and expanded cloud capabilities

  • Mobile Safe Shield

    Mobile Safe Shield

    SafeWood Designs, Inc., a manufacturer of patented bullet resistant products, is excited to announce the launch of the Mobile Safe Shield. The Mobile Safe Shield is a moveable bullet resistant shield that provides protection in the event of an assailant and supplies cover in the event of an active shooter. With a heavy-duty steel frame, quality castor wheels, and bullet resistant core, the Mobile Safe Shield is a perfect addition to any guard station, security desks, courthouses, police stations, schools, office spaces and more. The Mobile Safe Shield is incredibly customizable. Bullet resistant materials are available in UL 752 Levels 1 through 8 and include glass, white board, tack board, veneer, and plastic laminate. Flexibility in bullet resistant materials allows for the Mobile Safe Shield to blend more with current interior décor for a seamless design aesthetic. Optional custom paint colors are also available for the steel frame.

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”