Arctic Wolf survey finds two-thirds of organisations experienced a major cybersecurity incident last year; security budgets poised to Increase for majority of businesses - The Pick Online Magazine

Arctic Wolf®, a leader in security operations, haspublished findings from a recent survey of 300 cybersecurity and IT decision-makers fromAustralia and New Zealand. After a year of high-profile cyberattacks in the region, the survey data revealstrends, attitudes, and beliefs that these leaders have on a wide array of cybersecurity and business issues.

The survey from Arctic Wolf reveals that security budgets are poised to increase in the vast majority (62%) of organisations, executives’ confidence in their ability to defend against attacks remains high (88%) despite a wave of recent intrusions, and two-thirds of businesses admit to having experienced a security breach.

Additional findings from the survey include:

• One-in-six (16%) respondents claim their organisations has no form of 24×7 security monitoring in place, and almost a quarter (23%) have no single person dedicated to cybersecurity full-time.
• 25% of respondents say they cut IT/security headcount last year, with 15% also expecting to conduct layoffs in 2023.
• One quarter (25%) of respondents claim their ANZ-based organisations have knowingly concealed a cyber-attack to preserve the reputation of their business.
• Over a third (35%) of respondents would be willing to pay a five-figure ransom to threat actors to resume business operations, while 57% claim they would never pay a ransom

“While many cybersecurity leaders in Australia and New Zealand are confident in their ability to defend their business from cyber threats, the fact that over two-thirds of companies claim to have experienced a major cybersecurity incident last year highlights that many organisations are still ill-prepared to protect their businesses against both sophisticated and commodity attacks,” said David Hayes, regional director, Australia and New Zealand, Arctic Wolf. “The best way for organisations to break out of this cycle of fear and uncertainty is for them to recognise that they don’t have a tools problem, but an operational one, and embrace security operations to address the ANZ-region’s evolving threat landscape and end cyber risk.”

Arctic Wolf delivers organisations of all sizes a comprehensive suite of security operations solutions that is designed to give businesses the protection, resilience, and guidance they need to defend against modern cyber threats. This includes distinct capabilities such as Managed Detection and Response (MDR), Managed Risk, Managed Security Awareness – each delivered seamlessly as part of the Arctic Wolf® Security Operations Cloud.

It brings much-needed simplicity, ease of use, and accessibility to security operations as companies look for technologies and services to bolster their internal resources. Complete Credit Solutions, an Australian-based financial services company leverages Arctic Wolf’s platform to unify the data from their multitude of IT and security tools and provide internal resources with ongoing strategic guidance that helps continuously improve their overall security posture.

“The Arctic Wolf Security Operations Cloud has given us a unified view into the security tools we use across our organisation and has helped us to drastically cut down the number of alerts our internal team has to investigate on a daily basis, allowing us more time to focus on our strategic security priorities,” Mustafa Mohabbat, Head of IT, Complete Credit Solutions. “With the round the clock coverage and ongoing strategic guidance that their Concierge Delivery Model provides us, Arctic Wolf are not just an extension of our security team, they are an essential part of it.”

Arctic Wolf employs a 100% partner-centric go-to-market model, which has cemented the company as the cybersecurity partner-of-choice for more than 1,175 solution providers worldwide, including ASI Solutions and REDD in Australia and New Zealand. Arctic Wolf’s award-winning channel program provides opportunities for security-minded and cloud-focused resale partners to forge a deep, strategic relationship with the company and position themselves at the forefront of the security operations market.

“As a leader in IT solutions throughout Australia and New Zealand, ASI Solutions is thrilled to partner with the leader in security operations to elevate threat detection and protection for us and our customers,” says Lloyd Vickery, NZ Country Manager of ASI Solutions. “We are committed to delivering outcome-based solutions to our customers, and our partnership with Arctic Wolf will enable our customers to fully maximise security operations at scale and defend against the rapidly evolving threat landscape.”

“Arctic Wolf and its portfolio of security operations solutions are the ideal fit for our customers looking to improve their security outcomes across the entire cybersecurity framework. Recent high profile security breaches in Australia have brought security conversations to be front of mind for executives and employees alike across the country. We are proud to be one of Arctic Wolf’s first partners in the ANZ region and be able to bring robust security solutions to our clients,” said Brad Ferris, chief executive officer and co-founder, REDD.