The cybersecurity market appears poised for significant growth as the UAE is witnessing a surge in demand for cybersecurity solutions due to its growing digital infrastructure
The cybersecurity market appears poised for significant growth in the near term as business is booming for both cybercriminals and cybersecurity tech companies.
The adoption of cybersecurity measures is expected to grow with the rising awareness, availability of more technology tools and increasing internet penetration among developing and developed countries, experts say.
Top executives, analysts and industry experts said the UAE is witnessing a surge in demand for cybersecurity solutions due to its growing digital infrastructure and increasing cyber threats from the cybercriminals.
Referring to recent data by market research firm Statista, they said the UAE is projected to witness a significant increase in revenue within the cybersecurity market, with an estimated value of $560 million by the year 2025 compared to the global cybersecurity market which grew over the last few years with revenue increasing from $83.32 billion in 2016 to approximately $166 billion in 2023.
Experts said the cybersecurity market appears poised for significant growth in the near term as business is booming for both cybercriminals and cybersecurity tech companies. Statista recently predicted the annual cost of cybercrime worldwide will increase 69.94 per cent between 2023 and 2028.
Global spending on security and risk management is likely to post 14.3 per cent increase last year, according to Gartner, more than IT spending as a whole at eight per cent. And Fortune Business Insights expects the cybersecurity market to reach $424.97 billion by 2030, nearly 2.5 times its 2023 valuation.
A recent report from McKinsey & Company suggested total market opportunity amounts to between $1.5 trillion and $2 trillion — or around 10 times the current vended market. McKinsey researchers based their estimations on the continuing explosion in cyberthreats, growing regulatory pressures on enterprises and the ongoing digitisation of the global economy.
Vinay Surana, Managing Director, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa at Allianz Partners, said every individual and business should take precautionary measures to protect themselves or their corporate interests from rising threats of cyberattacks.
Cyber Protection First
Vinay Surana, Managing Director, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa at Allianz Partners, said every individual and business should take precautionary measures to protect themselves or their corporate interests from rising threats of cyberattacks.
“To protect yourself against cybercriminals, start by educating yourself about common tactics such as phishing, ransomware, and identity theft. Always verify sender details, avoid clicking suspicious links, and use of up-to-date anti-virus software alongside two-factor authentication,” Surana told BTR.
“While arming yourself with knowledge and preventive measures are essential, investing in cyber insurance provides an added layer of protection. As cybercriminals becoming increasingly sophisticated, even the most cautious individuals and businesses can be at risk, making cyber insurance a crucial safeguard against potential losses,” he said.
A recent report from McKinsey & Company suggested total market opportunity amounts to between $1.5 trillion and $2 trillion — or around 10 times the current vended market.
Personal Protection Plan
Allianz Partners is putting a lot of emphasise on providing a holistic yet simple protection combining prevention services, assistance support and insurance.
“To protect individuals in the best possible way and to minimise the risk for customers to fall victim of a fraud or cyberattack, we partner with the global IT-security provider F-Secure. This solution is an integral part of our dedicated cyber protection called allyz Cyber, which offers an end to end protection for customers’ digital life from prevention to assistance to insurance. It is currently available in some European markets, but ready to be rolled-out in further countries and geographies,” Surana said.
Referring to the research institute Statista, he said the frequency of large cyber claims (>€1 million) in the first six months of 2024 increased by 14 per cent, while severity increased by 17 per cent.
“These figures clearly demonstrate a rapidly growing and increasingly complex market, which is estimated to reach $20 trillion by 2026. Furthermore the global Allianz risk barometer ranked Cyber risks as the number one threat to businesses globally,” he said.
“We at Allianz Partners put at the core of our efforts education in pair with prevention measures and insurance services for end customers. This comes to life with our Allyz Cyber solution, that combines all of this in one platform. Our approach is to offer this via our business partners to the customer, embedded in various industry´s offerings — this can be banks, financial institutions, retailers and telcos,” he added.
Wissam Saadeddine, Co-Founder of Secure Domains, said Cybersecurity starts with cyber awareness.
Cyber Awareness is a Must
Wissam Saadeddine, Co-Founder of Secure Domains, said Cybersecurity starts with cyber awareness.
“Organisations and vendors should invest in educating and updating their employees and communities by developing training programmes, clear policies and guidelines followed by a dynamic and agile cybersecurity strategy to align with the business while staying ahead of the latest cyber threats and attacks,” Saadeddi told BTR.
In today’s world, he said the cybersecurity strategy should focus on protecting the business and reducing risk from advanced threats and attacks in a multi-cloud environment from cyber prevention to mitigation and remediation.
“As a foundation, organisations need to empower and retool DNS with AI and Threat Intelligence to be the first layer of defence, given the presence of DNS connecting to any network. This can save many cycles in the cyber kill chain and prevent the organisation from cyber threats in the first attempt. This should be followed by leveraging concepts like a Zero Trust architecture with SSE, identity, API and endpoint security to name a few.”
He said the cyber strategy should also embrace a flexible, scalable architecture to future-proof business transformation. “It should minimise limitations, enhance user experience by securely reducing latency, ensure seamless access from anywhere without complexity and optimize cost through minimal investments and leveraging security as a service.”
The cyber strategy should also embrace a flexible, scalable architecture to future-proof business transformation.
Data, Privacy Protection
Saadeddi said all sectors are subject to cyberattacks and threats depending on the nature of their business and the nature of the attack.
“Data remains the primary target of cyberattacks, with government and federal agencies often being targeted their strategic and nationally sensitive information, driven by ongoing geopolitical turbulence. However, BFSI, Insurance and retail sectors remain top targets for cybercrime and data theft as attackers focus on customer records and accounts,” he said.
“Data is the corporate gold mine. Any data leak regardless of its form, can result in significant reputational and financial damage, often leveraged by competitors and attackers with both short and long term impact,” he added.
Saadeddi said organisations must build a solid architecture empowered with the right tools to secure their data in a multi-cloud environment and secure all ports and protocols that could be leveraged as a channel for data theft, closely monitor and control data access and ensure they have a data recovery strategy to mitigate risks and minimize the impact of cyberattacks.
Chester Wisniewski, director, field CTO, Sophos, said cybersecurity has become a major concern for businesses and individuals.
Cybersecurity a Major Concern
Chester Wisniewski, director, field CTO, Sophos, said cybersecurity has become a major concern for businesses and individuals.
“For both businesses and individuals, the most important thing is to get the basics right. Keep your software up to date, patched and use unique passwords and multifactor authentication everywhere it is available,” he said.
He said the vast majority of breaches begin with exploitation of a vulnerable network device or a stolen credential that is not protected by a second factor.
“Businesses in particular also need to focus on incident detection and response for when the above fails. In most breaches much of the damage is done within 24 hours of the incident, so 24/7 monitoring is essential to limit damages,” he said.
In reply to a question, he said all sectors are targeted and all sizes as well.
“While some sectors like healthcare and education may be softer targets, the reality is all organisations are worth stealing from, extorting, and even having their resources commandeered to use in attacks against others. It can be difficult for smaller organisations to muster as strong a defence as much larger enterprises, which is why we are seeing a lot of growth in the use of MDR services where they can share access to top notch security talent for around the clock protection.”
“The best strategy is to minimise the amount of sensitive data you collect and retain, and then to have a comprehensive plan to protect what data is necessary. One often overlooked strategy is to ensure sensitive data is segmented off from other non-critical areas of the network. This can allow for a disconnection of this network in the event of an incident providing further isolation from harm,” Wisniewski added.
Asif Azad, CEO of Frshar Mail, said cybersecurity is a growing concern in today’s digital world, where privacy breaches and data leaks have become all too common.
Protects Your Mails
Asif Azad, CEO of Frshar Mail, said cybersecurity is a growing concern in today’s digital world, where privacy breaches and data leaks have become all too common.
“To ensure your privacy, it’s crucial to rely on platforms that prioritise security and operate independently of vulnerable third-party systems. This is why we are recommending Frshar Mail in the public domain,” Azad told BTR.
Unlike traditional email services, he said Frshar Mail is designed with unparalleled security measures, ensuring that only the account owner can access their email.
“Even if account data were exposed to the dark web, it would remain completely inaccessible. All other information shared online is inherently vulnerable, as the internet, by its nature, is not an intranet. By choosing Frshar Mail, users can experience a level of security that sets a new standard in the fight against cybersecurity threats,” he said.
The Government Role
Azad was of the view that the UAE government is taking commendable steps to protect the data and privacy of its citizens, introducing laws and regulations to secure the digital space. However, it’s important to note that any government can create laws to regulate the surface and deep web, but these laws cannot effectively govern the dark web.
“The reality is that hackers can access almost anything on the internet, making traditional methods of protection insufficient. This is precisely why Frshar Mail has created something different — a secure email system designed to withstand even the most sophisticated hacking attempts.
Unlike other platforms, Frshar Mail operates independently of vulnerable systems and uses innovative technologies to block potential data leaks, providing users with unparalleled privacy and security. By addressing these challenges directly, Frshar Mail complements governmental efforts and sets a new benchmark in digital safety,” he said.
AI — A Double-edged sword
Azad said AI has immense potential to combat cyberattacks, but its use comes with a double-edged sword.
“While AI can strengthen security by dynamically creating and evolving defences, many current AI projects gather user data and store it in unregulated or dark web data centres, posing significant risks,” he said.
“At Frshar Mail, we’ve harnessed AI’s power to protect users rather than exploit them. Our system generates unique security codes dynamically, ensuring unparalleled data protection. However, the growing reliance on AI also introduces threats, as self-thinking systems could become uncontrollable,” he added.
He said the lack of stringent laws governing AI and data usage exacerbates these risks. “For AI to truly enhance cybersecurity, it must be implemented ethically, prioritising user privacy and employing self-deleting data mechanisms to neutralise threats. If mishandled, AI could escalate vulnerabilities, making it crucial to use this technology responsibly and innovatively, as we do at Frshar Mail,” Azad concluded.
— muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com