Critical comms companies lax in security

More than one in five (22%) companies within the critical communication industry encountered a data breach in the last 12 months, new research from Finbold.com suggests.

A survey of attendees at the International Wireless Communications Expo (IWCE) found that around the same proportion said they do not have any form of cybersecurity systems set in place, and just 36% regularly test their cybersecurity systems.

But as well as data breaches, respondents reported facing multiple attack types including malware (61%), phishing (56%) ransomware (27%) and DoS (16%). In addition, 10% reported unauthorised access to their systems.

The survey also found that 36% of participants do not have any have third-party cybersecurity agreements in place with their vendors.

Another emerging threat facing the industry is associated with the continued popularity of bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policies. The report found that 44% of critical communications companies reported having a BYOD policy in place.

While 76% of cyber attacks cost less than US$100,000 ($163,000), a further 20% cost up to US$1 million, and a further 4% cost up to US$10 million.

“While cybersecurity incidents affect every industry around the world, an attack within the critical communications ecosystem, which includes police, fire and emergency services, has the potential to affect people’s lives,” IWCE Director Stephanie McCall said.

“As hacks become more frequent and sophisticated, any organisation working within the ecosystem must have the most sophisticated cybersecurity systems in place to avoid interruption of their crucial services.”

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