2021 was an action-packed year for cybersecurity, from ransomware to phishing, attacks were on the rise. With the new year approaching, it is important to start planning for defenses ahead of time based on what is already known about the current state of the industry. Investing in the right defenses to keep budgets efficient and security uncompromised will set a solid foundation for the time to come. Here’s how your organization can budget for cybersecurity in 2022.

Existing Trends

Trends from previous years don’t just vanish, which is why it is essential to recognize and react to them when planning. An important reality to keep in mind is that you can’t defend against everything, but by choosing the greatest threats that face your industry and investing in defenses against those threats, you may be able to protect yourself from damage that could have occurred otherwise.

One of the biggest threats in 2021, was ransomware. In general, this type of malware was seen widespread across many industries and is the perfect threat to keep in mind when budgeting for cybersecurity. Specifically, locking down endpoints and configuring a robust Privileged Access Management (PAM) system would be able to assist in mitigating damages from ransomware. Budgeting for investments in endpoint security and PAM would be beneficial for defending against ransomware attacks for the future. NuHarbor Security partners with industry leaders CrowdStrike and Cyberark to provide next-generation solutions to address these needs.

Phishing was another huge threat in 2021, that will continue to be relevant in the upcoming year due to the continued growth of widespread electronic usage. Phishing works well in an environment with many people, by exploiting those who may not be as informed on phishing tactics. Phishing has affected nearly all industries on a huge scale. If you believe that your business may be a target of phishing attacks, budgeting for defenses against them will imperative. Investing in employee education, to prevent phishing attacks from happening is a great way to stop your organization from being exploited. Testing the human element of your organization is also a good idea to determine your vulnerability level to phishing attacks. NuHarbor offers Phishing Attack Assessments crafted with custom phishing campaigns to test your organization’s users and determine your vulnerability level. Planning is key in preventing attacks, keeping current threats top of mind will help to budget for the most relevant solutions to mitigate attacks.

While not a threat in the traditional sense, the shortage of cybersecurity professionals in the industry is a trend that has been affecting the security of organizations across the world. The need for employees to implement and manage the advanced systems that are required to defend against modern attacks poses a greater threat than any threat the cyber world currently faces. Determine if staffing and personnel resources may be your most vulnerable area in cyber defense and use that knowledge when budgeting for 2022.

Industry Standards

While cyberattacks have grown in popularity, so has cybersecurity. Although, experts predicted cybersecurity spending would increase by only 2.4%, from 2019 to 2020, it increased by over 10.5%. Worldwide, spending on cybersecurity is forecast to be $170.4 billion in 2022. This increase suggests that spending is growing at a faster than expected rate and is likely to continue. According to Gartner, many organizations do not know their security budget, but enterprises should be spending between 4 and 7 percent of their IT budgets on IT security. When planning for 2022, it may be beneficial to increase cybersecurity spending knowing that attacks will continue to be an imminent threat to your organization. However, assessing your current assets and current risk factors are the most important aspects when determining your organization’s cybersecurity budget.

Personalized Security Planning

While there isn’t a “one size fits all” solution to how to budget for cybersecurity, a lot of the guess work can be taken out by conducting pro-active assessments to reveal where you need to budget. Risk Assessments are a great way to determine where your biggest risks are and how big your attack surface is. Another great proactive assessment is a Penetration Test, which will give you in-depth knowledge of exactly where and how you may be able to become compromised.

Plan For Resources

Leveraging this information combined with industry trends can lead organizations to develop efficient and cost-conscious spending on cybersecurity. However, conducting these assessments and analyzing the results can be difficult and expensive when done in-house. Luckily, NuHarbor Security offers Risk Assessments and Penetration Testing which can provide valuable information to assist in developing an efficient cybersecurity budget. Overall, cybersecurity budgets should be personalized to each organization, but aided by facts and trends seen in the industry to create a comprehensive cybersecurity defense.

For more information protecting your organization in 2022, talk to one of our experts.

Contact Us