laptop cybersecurity

Five Surprising Trends in Cybersecurity

The impact of GDPR, the increasing number of issues with shadow IT and the more advanced solutions for IoT devices are among the most surprising trends.

Cybersecurity has become one of the largest sectors in the tech industry. As such, cybersecurity has continued to develop surprising new technologies that are transforming the business landscape. This expansion has left some issues that need to be dealt with, however, amongst them being exploited devices and incomplete stock inventory.

The IoT has created a previously unthinkable world of interconnected devices that grants access to the internet across the globe. It has been, by all accounts, a resounding success. However, the IoT is not without its issues, as demonstrated by the number of unmanaged devices without cybersecurity connected to secured internet lines.

1. Managing unmanaged devices

Gone are the days of closed systems. When working in a group, company or any kind of organization, you’re dealing with many devices, some secured, some unsecured.

With the advent of the Internet of Things (the IoT), this problem has only worsened. In fact, many companies don’t even have an inventory of devices that are on their network. Obviously, this is troublesome.

However, cybersecurity professionals are implementing new strategies for managing these unsecured, unmanaged devices by cutting off open access points from sensitive data.

2. Integrating data protections a la GDPR

Europe has implemented data protections for all citizens. With the steady increase in data breaches, the general data protection regulation requires organizations to handle sensitive data with more care than in the past.

Read more: GDPR's Impact on Incident Response

3. Operationalizing small business security

Cybercrime has surged over 175 percent. With this rapid and pronounced increase in cybercrime, there are more incidents of small and medium businesses coming under attack.

Due to recent cyber crimes and major data breaches, smaller companies are beginning to understand the importance of implementing their own system for data protection and crisis management.

Read more: House Passes Two Bills Aimed at Improving Cybersecurity for Small Businesses

For smaller companies, enterprise cybersecurity can mean different things. For medical and law professionals, data should be managed with the utmost care: encrypted and seldom transferred.

4. An increasing number of problems with shadow IT

Updating your IT systems is incredibly important. Many companies do update their operating systems, databases, and protocols. However, they may leave traces of the old systems active, creating a secondary unseen system or “shadow IT system” that is unprotected, unsupported, and unsupervised.

As companies upgrade, update and replace aging systems, it’s going to increase the number of vulnerabilities that are possible, therefore increasing the attention paid to managing shadow IT systems.

5. More advanced solutions for protecting IoT access points

Managing unmanaged devices and protecting data from vulnerabilities due to shadow IT systems are facets of a growing trend. As the number of devices on a network proliferates, the amount of data surges and the number of transfers and exchanges expands, new solutions for protection are necessary.

Namely, cybersecurity professionals are aiming their sights on supervising the unsupervised. One way to protect open access points is to simply have protocols in place that essentially unlink access points from sensitive data in the event of a breach.

Conclusion

The onboarding of millions of unmanaged devices has created millions of exploitable gaps that can be infiltrated by malicious hackers. Solving the issue is not a simple equation, but a start would be taking a complete inventory of managed devices.

A shocking 15 percent of businesses reported having a complete list of their connected devices. This leaves their network and other users subject to the whims of hackers at any time due to unmanaged devices. Expect these two issues to come up often as cybersecurity continues its forward march. Luckily, the GDPR has ordered businesses to protect consumer privacy, no matter the cost.

Then there are the issues of shadow IT that continue to cause massive problems for internet users. Old tech covered up by new technology is a recipe for cybersecurity catastrophe. It leaves security holes for the internal system and the external users. This can easily be accomplished by simply switching off noncompliant technologies and replacing them with cloud technologies.

Overall, it tends to be cheaper to transfer the data and dispose of old technology as an incentive to become more secure. A good deal of rising trends deal with the IoT access points and securing those by whatever means necessary.

Featured

  • 12 Commercial Crime Sites to Do Your Research

    12 Commercial Crime Sites to Do Your Research

    Understanding crime statistics in your industry and area is crucial for making important decisions about your security budget. With so much information out there, how can you know which statistics to trust? Read Now

  • Boosting Safety and Efficiency

    Boosting Safety and Efficiency

    In alignment with the state of Mississippi’s mission of “Empowering Mississippi citizens to stay connected and engaged with their government,” Salient's CompleteView VMS is being installed throughout more than 150 state boards, commissions and agencies in order to ensure safety for thousands of constituents who access state services daily. Read Now

  • Live From GSX: Post-Show Review

    Live From GSX: Post-Show Review

    This year’s Live From GSX program was a rousing success! Again, we’d like to thank our partners, and IPVideo, for working with us and letting us broadcast their solutions to the industry. You can follow our Live From GSX 2023 page to keep up with post-show developments and announcements. And if you’re interested in working with us in 2024, please don’t hesitate to ask about our Live From programs for ISC West in March or next year’s GSX. Read Now

    • Industry Events
    • GSX
  • People Say the Funniest Things

    People Say the Funniest Things

    By all accounts, GSX version 2023 was completely successful. Apparently, there were plenty of mix-ups with the airlines and getting aircraft from the East Coast into Big D. I am all ears when I am in a gathering of people. You never know when a nugget of information might flip out. Read Now

    • Industry Events
    • GSX

Featured Cybersecurity

Webinars

New Products

  • FEP GameChanger

    FEP GameChanger

    Paige Datacom Solutions Introduces Important and Innovative Cabling Products GameChanger Cable, a proven and patented solution that significantly exceeds the reach of traditional category cable will now have a FEP/FEP construction. 3

  • 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. 3

  • 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.” 3