Security is a concern, especially as it can hit bank accounts now

New research from EY suggests British businesses are more concerned than ever about security. Funny that, considering there’s now a whopping fine to worry about.

Security is one of those areas which is constantly discussed but little is done to address. Irrelevant as to how many CEOs tell you its top of the agenda or how many statements start with the phrase ‘our customers security is our number one concern’, it’s an aspect of the technology world which has been swept aside. But not according to this research from EY.

“It’s not surprising that businesses are most concerned with the threat of cyberattacks,” said Adrian Baschnonga, Global Lead Telecommunications Analyst at EY. “The introduction of 5G will help organisations unlock new growth opportunities, but this transition comes at a time when fears regarding data breaches and network security are especially pronounced.”

While you always have to take statements like this with a pinch of salt, it might be right this time. Why? Because if you want to make executives care about something aside from their annual bonuses, you have to fight fire with fire.

Under the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) brought into play last May, any company which is found to have inadequately protected customer or employee data are subject to fines of 3% of annual turnover or €20 million. GDPR fines are proportionate to the risk posed by a breach, allowing flexibility for regulators to tackle the problem, but it certainly seems to have caught some attention.

According to professional services firm RPC, in the 12 months prior to September 30 2018 (the period in which GDPR was introduced) the Information Commissioners Office issued fines totalling just over £5 million, a 24% increase on the previous period of 12 months. Considering the ICO only had a couple of months to swing the GDPR stick at offenders, it would be fair to assume the watchdog is fully embracing the new powers offered to it.

This also seems to have hit home with those investing in new technologies. 40% of respondents to EY’s survey are worried about 5G and cyberattacks, while 37% saw IoT as a risk. These numbers aren’t particularly high, but they are the biggest concerns.

Another factor to consider is the consumer. While many will have been blind to the risk of data breaches in by-gone years, this does not seem to be the case anymore. Recent Lloyd’s research claims 44% of UK consumers believe there is a risk to personal safety in the sharing economy, perhaps indicating they would be hard-pushed to share data. If enterprise organizations are going to benefit from the data boom, they’ll have to convince customers that their personal information will be safe.

Whether this translates to appropriate security investments remains to be seen, as there seems to be a lack of ownership over security overall. Enterprise organizations are looking to suppliers for security to be built into products, while it is perfectly reasonable for suppliers to ask enterprise organizations to do more. Security should be built into products, but if an individual buys a front door, the manufacturer cannot be blamed when it is left open or an inadequate lock is used.

More often than not the carrot is used to incentivise business, but it seems the GDPR stick is an effective tool in bringing security to the front of executive’s minds. Hopefully now there will be less pandering for PR headlines and more affirmative action.