Cybersecurity trends are continually evolving and growing within the powerful frameworks of information technology, the cloud, and network technologies. Over the last few years, rules and procedures have been revised to modernize business operations.

Companies of every size must recognize that cyber threats are a legitimate and ongoing concern that will remain part of our everyday lives for years to come.

• SolarWinds

• Cybersecurity in 2021 and Beyond

• Final Word

There are no magic bullets for achieving success in business. Owners must now adapt their approach to managing cyber activities to stay ahead of the curve. There has been a flurry of new threats and technologies targeting the new stay-at-home mobile workforce.

The remote workforce model has no network boundary, and more applications are written for the cloud than ever. These new network devices, and in most part, poorly written code, give attackers the green light into your business. 

  

Three Cybersecurity solutions help remote workers control their network.

The world has shifted, and hackers have found lucrative new areas of access to a company’s network. In response to the lack of network borders, the adoption of new cybersecurity technologies has accelerated. 

1.  SASE (Secure Access Service Edge) is a real-time context policy for a continuous assessment of risk. SASE is a cloud-delivered service based on WAN  and network security policies.

SASE policies can benefit a corporation in several ways, including flexibility with cloud infrastructure, reduced complexity, and cost savings.

2.  Zero Trust has been part of the technology lexicon since 2010, when the phrase was first introduced. A few years later, Google implemented a Zero Trust Policy for its network. Zero Trust is an approach in which organizations do not automatically trust any device or human access, whether inside or outside their network.
3.  XDR (Extended Detection and Response) is in the early stages of development by several elite vendors. XDR uses machine learning techniques to house multiple security mechanisms. Risk managers are continually overwhelmed with security alerts; XDR helps alleviate these daily pressures.

XDR helps companies improve threat detection and response by centralizing their activity and reducing false positives. 

SolarWinds

Washington DC’s worst cybersecurity hack, SolarWinds Orion, has company executives around the world shaking in their loafers. Cyber experts believe there simply aren’t enough skilled workers to track down all the damage done to business and government networks.

According to Microsoft’s President, the SolarWinds Orion hack was the most powerful and sophisticated cyberattack ever.

Bruce Schneier, a cyber expert and Harvard fellow, states, “We have a serious problem. We don’t know what networks they are in, how deep they are, what access they have, what tools they left.” The only way to know these infected networks are clean is to burn it down to the ground and rebuild it.”

Three cybersecurity trends have emerged since the SolarWinds attack.

1.  Microsoft was one of the prime recipients of the mayhem created by SolarWinds. According to authorities, hackers exploited limitations in the software giant’s authentication architecture and protocols. Microsoft has since rebuilt the vulnerabilities and taken issue with the government’s insistence that more could have been done.
2.  Cyber Insurance premiums have surged 29% since 2020. Policies for cyberattacks have been in place for a lot longer than most people realize. In 1997, AIG wrote the first cyber insurance policy. Since the SolarWinds incident, cybercrime has increased dramatically, and cyber insurance premiums have risen approximately 11% annually, with no signs of slowing.
3.  The cloud, with advanced services and advantages for remote work, has skyrocketed the targets for attackers. Following SolarWinds, attacks on cloud applications have increased and are expected to continue at a torrid pace well past 2021. Misconfigured cloud settings were a significant cause of breaches in 2020, resulting in an average cost to the enterprise of over $4 million. 

Cybersecurity in 2021 and Beyond

Every company is now being urged to be proactive in its cybersecurity approach and to address the myriad cyber threats that are on the horizon. Organizations must come to terms with the fact that security is no longer an optional expense but a budget line item.

• Companies must prioritize a cybersecurity workforce. 56% of organizations report a scarcity of personnel for 2021.
• Data continues to multiply every day. Businesses must automate their security processes whenever feasible. In 2020, IBM found a nearly $ 4 million discrepancy in the cost of a data breach between automated companies and those that were not.

Machine learning and AI technologies continue to experience a meteoric rise in complexity and usefulness. These technologies are being developed as part of the enterprise infrastructure to automate security and replace human intervention.

AI influences both sides of cybersecurity trends. Criminals exploit AI and machine learning techniques. Cybercriminals are automating their attacks using data poisoning and model stealing.  

Top Cybersecurity Concerns for Long Island Businesses in 2025

Final Word on Cybersecurity Trends

Decades ago and still today, business success requires long hours, sweat equity, and plenty of sacrifice. In this digital age, most business owners believe an antivirus program will suffice, and their data records are secure.

Cybersecurity should now be one of the first steps in preparing your organization for success. A healthy distrust of cybercriminals goes a long way toward keeping company data, intellectual property, and digital assets safe from them.  If you’re unsure where to start, LI Tech Solutions provides clear, pressure-free cybersecurity assessments designed to help you understand your risk level without technical jargon.

Schedule a call today and get straightforward answers, honest advice, and a clear path to stronger cybersecurity for your business.