Timely detection of cyber-attacks vital for enterprises

Dubai - This year's 'Global Risks Report' from the World Economic Forum predicted that technology risks - in particular, cyber attacks - are set to continue to rise in both impact and frequency.

 A lot of sophistication is required to deal with today's targeted cyber attacks, according to an industry specialist.
This year's 'Global Risks Report' from the World Economic Forum predicted that technology risks - in particular, cyber attacks - are set to continue to rise in both impact and frequency.
"It's not about defence any more as attacks are bound to happen. It's more about how do you detect and respond.," Firosh Ummer, managing director of Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) at Paladion, told Khaleej Times during an interview.
At the recently-concluded Gisec in Dubai, Paladion focused on how enterprises can move to a predictive cyber defence model using security frameworks that actively and continuously adapt to the changing threat landscape.
Cyber attacks are becoming stealthy and creative, making timely detection a challenge for enterprises, Ummer said.
Responding to a question if CIOs (chief information officers) now have more budgets to spend on cyber security, he said: "It's not about budget any more as security has become a board-level issue today." CIOs now have to make the best use of available technology.
Attacks have been much more financially and politically motivated, he said, adding that hackers are well-funded for targeted attacks.
He mentioned that attacks do not originate from one country, rather they can be traced to a syndicate based in many countries. Giving the example of recent cyber attack on Bangladesh's central bank, he said it came from multiple countries and different amounts were stolen from different countries.
In order to deal with today's attacks, it is important to know how intelligent the IT team is in a company, he said. CIOs need a service provider to do this job. This is where Paladion steps in.
For over a decade, Paladion has been actively managing information risks for over 700 customers. The company provides a complete spectrum of information risk management, comprising security assurance, compliance, governance, monitoring, security analytics and security management services, to large and medium-sized organisations.
Paladion also offers a suite of security intelligence products for global enterprises and cloud managed security services for mid-market organisations.
In the EMEA, the company has been growing at 30 to 35 per cent year on year, according to Ummer.
- abdulbasit@khaleejtimes.com