Only 11% of Companies in Australia Surveyed are Ready to Defend Against Cybersecurity Threats

Australian News Summary:

Readiness is critical: 92% respondents said they expect a cybersecurity incident to disrupt their business in the next 12 to 24 months

The cost of being unprepared can be substantial as 70% of respondents said they had a cybersecurity incident in the last 12 months, which cost a similar number of organizations (69%) affected at least AUD $740,000+* ​​

Companies are taking action: 91% respondents said their organizations plan to increase their cybersecurity budget by at least 10% over the next 12 months

Sydney, Australia – March 21, 2023 — A mere 11% of organizations in Australia have a ‘Mature’ level of readiness to tackle the cybersecurity risks of a hybrid world, according to Cisco’s first-ever Cybersecurity Readiness Index released today. The index has been developed against the backdrop of a post-COVID world, where users and data must be secured wherever work gets done. The report highlights where businesses are doing well and where cybersecurity readiness gaps will widen if global business and security leaders don’t take action.

Cisco Cybersecurity Readiness Index: Resilience in a Hybrid World

Organizations have moved from an operating model that was largely static – where people operated from single devices from one location, connecting to a static network – to a hybrid world in which they increasingly operate from multiple devices in multiple locations, connect to multiple networks, access applications in the cloud and on the go, and generate enormous amount of data. This presents new and unique cybersecurity challenges for companies.

Titled Cisco Cybersecurity Readiness Index: Resilience in a Hybrid World, the report measures the readiness of companies across five core pillars that determine the cybersecurity resilience of businesses facing modern threats: identity, devices, network, application workloads, and data, and 19 different solutions across these pillars.

The independent double-blind survey asked 6,700 cybersecurity leaders across 27 markets to indicate which of these solutions they had deployed, and the stage of deployment. Companies were then classified in four stages of increasing readiness: Beginner, Formative, Progressive and Mature.

Beginner (Overall score of less than 10): At initial stages of deployment of solutions

Formative (Score of between 11 – 44): Have some level of deployment, but performing below average on cybersecurity readiness

Progressive (Score of between 45 – 75): Considerable level of deployment and performing above average on cybersecurity readiness

Mature (Score of 76 and higher): Have achieved advanced stages of deployment and are most ready to address security risks

Findings

Alongside the stark finding that only 11% of companies in Australia are at the Mature stage, more than half (54%) of companies fall into the Beginner (5%) or Formative (49%) stages – meaning they are performing below average on cybersecurity readiness. Globally, 15% of companies are at a Mature stage.

This readiness gap is telling, not least because 92% respondents said they expect a cybersecurity incident to disrupt their business in the next 12 to 24 months. The cost of being unprepared can be substantial as 70% of respondents said they had a cybersecurity incident in the last 12 months, and 69% of those affected said it cost them at least AUD $740,000+.

“It seems evident that there are things we can do better in cybersecurity as Australian organisations can do more when it comes to their cybersecurity hygiene. While the report shows the shortfalls, it also highlights the areas in which we are progressing relative to maturity, with less organisations in the ‘beginner’ space, and more organisations in the ‘progressive’ stage. That’s good news – it highlights our industry is maturing in the right direction.
—Corien Vermaak, Head of Cybersecurity for Cisco Australia & New Zealand

“Security is clearly top of mind for Australian organisations, and it’s no surprise given the challenges and threats in this space. We can see that orgnaisations in the industry are expecting these incidents now, with 92% of respondents saying they expect a cybersecurity incident.”

“The move to hybrid working has fundamentally shifted the landscape of security readiness, and we are moving towards a progressive style of maturity – that’s good news. There is more for us to do work together, as organisations, partners and communities to continue on the upwards trajectory.”

“There is an opportunity for the public and private sectors to work more closely in order to continue to improve in cybersecurity readienss, such as educateing multiple areas of the business, not just the immediate team and users. As well, addressing the cybersecurity skills gap is key to how toour responses to improving cybersecurity maturity can be more sustainable.”

Business leaders must establish a baseline of ‘readiness’ across the five security pillars to build secure and resilient organizations. This need is especially critical given that 91% of the respondents plan to increase their security budgets by at least 10 percent over the next 12 months. By establishing a base, organizations can build on their strengths and prioritize the areas where they need more maturity and improve their resilience.

Other key findings of the index include:

Readiness across the five key pillars

Identity: Only 23% of organizations are ranked Mature

Devices: This has the highest percentage of companies in the Mature stage at 26%

Network Security: Companies are lagging on this front with 56% of organizations in the Beginner or Formative stages

Application Workloads: This is the pillar where companies are the least prepared, with 67% of organizations in the Beginner or Formative stages

Data: Progress is needed here, as only 17% companies are in the Mature stage

*$500,000 USD

Read the Australian market snapshot here.

Read the global report here.

ENDS

About Cisco
Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in technology that powers the Internet. Cisco inspires new possibilities by reimagining your applications, securing your data, transforming your infrastructure, and empowering your teams for a global and inclusive future. Discover more on The Newsroom and follow us on Twitter at @Cisco.

Cisco and the Cisco logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. A listing of Cisco’s trademarks can be found at www.cisco.com/go/trademarks. Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company.

Media contact

For any inquiries, please contact Adela Amanowicz, head of PR & Communications here.