Photo credit: Daniel Korpai
Cybersecurity is of major importance to the government, citizens, and businesses in the United States and around the world. While Homeland Security works to discover and enforce ways to make cyber activity safe, we are a long way from being there. Computer security divisions around the world face similar problems. Malware actors and privacy-breaching software are more sophisticated and a much larger threat.
In May of 2018, The Department Of Homeland Security released a 5-year plan to reduce our vulnerability and to keep up with the growing threat against us. However, the plan has not effectively strengthened its infrastructure in these early months.
Photo credit: IIya Pavlov
The European Union (EU) has been set to begin bringing major fines against companies that purposely or accidentally gather any personal information of a citizen. There are strict guidelines on how a company must handle the harvesting of any personal information.
The problem is, the United States does not have the same guidelines that define private information. For example, is your IP address personal information? Further, United States businesses are asking; can a European agency heavily fine an American citizen? The fact is they can. The United States is in agreement with Europe concerning the General Data Protection Regulations or GDPR. Some European countries (such as Germany) have already begun the process.
We live in a global economy. Many American businesses have branches in Europe. International commerce and a lack of a defined infrastructure are holding businesses back. The fines are so heavy that they would rather overdo it with security even if it cost them money.
Trends of 2019
- Companies will continue to go above and beyond the security guidelines to avoid fines by the GPCR. This will give actors a wide range of ways they can get their malware in.
- Google and Facebook are still receiving a lot of complaints regarding surveillance capitalism. Look for these giants to be facing some serious repercussions perhaps as early as this year.
- Cyber-crooks are more sophisticated than ever before and they are getting smarter. While we are pushing back for fear of penalty, the bad guys are charging forward to take advantage of the lack of presence.
- Ransomware will slow down. Ransomware is a malware that hijacks your computer and will not release your functions until you pay them. This has primarily been aimed and unsuspecting users. 2019 will see the focus come off the average Joe and be concentrated more on businesses that will profit them the most. The healthcare industry is such a company. The ransom will be much more costly.
- In 2019, we will see more security that is based on intelligence and the digital profile of a user. Last years zero trust did not function well and in some cases, it crippled the companies as their employees could not have full access due to incorrect data.
- Companies will design their programs with security designs built in. No longer will a program be designed and the virus protection added later. Now that the threats are so serious, security by design is being implemented. This concept is being adapted to every level of organizations.
- Businesses and organizations are going to lean on cloud-based security more this year. The cloud-based security is platform driven and easy to use. Security in cloud-based programs can be shut on and off as needed. Past security concerns have been addressed, essentially giving IT a clearer view across the board without the surprise and a flexibility that allows immediate action when a threat is detected. Solutions like Loggly help you stay on top of your logs, for example.
With all of the emphasis on cybersecurity, people are being looked at carefully before they are given access to various legs of the systems. They are also going to be screened more often, No longer is a person going to sale through the hiring process and granted access, never being looked at again.
We lean on computers now, more than ever before. Technology is growing in leaps and bounds with no end in sight. Cybersecurity can no longer be an afterthought. As our dependence has grown on technology, it is our technology that can impact our social and financial standings in a big way.
Perhaps 2019 will be the year that a program is invented that genuinely protects the company and the employee or user. There is no doubt, the race is on. The only question that remains is who will win this race.