i3 - March/April 2018 - 17

By Susan Schreiner

Tech

C 4 T R E N DS

Cybersecurity: The Next 'Big Thing'
U.S. consumers lost
$19.4 billion to
cybercriminals in 2017

The world lost
$172 billion to
cybercriminals
in 2017

iStock/Getty Images

ybersecurity risks are escalating, threatening businesses,
governments and consumers. In a world that revolves
around the internet, security breaches, hacked elections,
hacked medical devices, cyberwarfare, cryptocurrency heists,
and other cyber threats are just a keystroke away. Some speculate
that cybercriminal activity will represent the greatest transfer
of economic wealth in history.
U.S. consumers lost $19.4 billion to
cybercriminals last year, according to
Symantec's 2017 Norton Cyber Security
Insights Report, and then spent
almost 24 hours each dealing with the
impact of cybercrime. That amount
jumps to $172 billion when you take
the rest of the world into account.
Cybersecurity incidents now rank as
number two on the Allianz (Insurance)
Risk Barometer, a report that identifies
the most important risk factors for
companies. This annual report is based
on insight from 1,911 risk experts
from 80 countries. The nature of cyber
threats is evolving and business
interruption is a worldwide concern.
C TA . t e c h / i 3

Connected Devices

At the recent annual World Economic
Forum (WEF) in Davos, cybersecurity
was a top concern by business and
government leaders. There was pressing
anxiety about cryptocurrency ecosystems, election security, cyberwarfare,
airline computer systems and chips.
And connected products and services
are increasing and creating more questions. Researchers forecast that as many
as 300 billion items will be connected by
2020 and 500 billion devices by 2030.
Innovations including augmented reality,
artificial intelligence, and the Internet of
Things (IoT) are transforming the global
landscape in unprecedented ways.

At CES 2018, companies showcased
amazing implementations based on
IoT - from smart cities and smart/
digital health to smart homes and selfdriving vehicles - but how secure are
these devices that eat excessive amounts
of personal data? Every app and connected device is a potential entry point
for cyber-attackers.
As the number of IoT devices balloons,
hackers will find new ways to uncover
secrets and protocols to access backend services and bypass access controls
in data centers; hijack nodes to deny
services, demand ransoms, steal data
or forge transactions; run unauthorized
transactions that could affect patient
safety; and new schemes that have not
been discovered yet.

Solutions on the Horizon

"Cyberattacks are perceived as the global
risk of highest concern to business leaders
in advanced economies," reports WEF in
its Global Risks Report 2018. "Cyber is
also viewed by the wider risk community
as the risk most likely to intensify in 2018."
New risks require new tools and models to
help manage and mitigate the impact of
a breach before data is stolen or nefarious
activities are played out.
A new model for a global security platform is needed that combines governmental and private collaborations to counter
these challenges. In January, WEF launched
the Global Centre for Cybersecurity to
facilitate this public-private cooperation.
How can businesses bake rigorous security into the DNA of their products from
the beginning? When it comes to cyber
warfare, do we engage in "active defense"?
As we work through these issues, our
common goal is to continue to confidently
harness innovation to impact people, society, and the planet for the greater good.

CONTACT: Reach Susan at
susan@c4trends.com
MARCH/APRIL 2018

http://www.CTA.tech

i3 - March/April 2018

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