INTERVIEW
Enterprise Cyber Security Strategy & Innovation , Andrzej Kawalec , is adamant that we now have the first solid evidence that companies are beginning to think of cyber security in a completely different way .
“ I think there ’ s really , really important conclusions that we ’ ve driven out of this research ,” he says . “ What we wanted to do was look at ‘ what are the links between strong cybersecurity and business decision making ?’ What we found , and it came out loud and clear , is that successful growing businesses are the ones which use security to drive their success .
“ That means that they use security not in a defensive , protective way , but they use it to enable new business models , new innovations , new markets – allowing their employees to work in different ways – and that , without strong security capabilities , they can ’ t take advantage of that new digital landscape .
“ So , we are starting to see evidence , in this report , of a change in how people approach security . That is hugely important because it means that the organisations that are going to win , the ones that are going to be the leaders and be successful , are the ones which use security not just as a reactive defensive capability , but one that can drive their business forward .
“ That ’ s a fundamental change in how we think about using data and how we think about enabling it ; that ’ s why we ’ re really excited about it .”
But what does Kawalec feel are the major findings of the report ?
He says : “ There is a direct correlation from security capability and skills to business benefits .
“ Cybersecurity will help you change how your business operates and allow you to get better business models , greater employee productivity and increased loyalty and trust from your customers . That ’ s a big , bold statement . People might have tried to make that statement before , but we ’ ve evidenced it in the research and the fact we have such high numbers and such consistent responses are what allows us to say that .
“ But , balancing that out , was the section which says 41 % of organisations say they ’ re actually unsure of who can help them with their information security challenges .
“ We ’ ve talked about driving growth and innovation . We ’ ve talked about security being a force
8 November 2017