Remote work has made its way into standard business practice, and companies must evolve their security measures to protect data, systems, and networks. They must learn new technologies, policies, and processes to ensure their remote workforce is secure.
To help you prepare for 2023, check these cybersecurity trends emerging in the industry.
#1 – Adoption of work-from-anywhere security
After the pandemic companies learned new ways of fully digital, remote operations.
On one hand, this accelerated the digitalization of society, but at the same time it left us more vulnerable to attacks than ever before.
Cybercriminals know this, and it is estimated that roughly half of all cyberattacks now target small and medium businesses.
Companies have prioritized productivity over security. This, combined with a lack of tools to protect remote workers, poor security awareness of the general public, and tight budgets, businesses large and small are paying a toll if they haven’t embraced cybersecurity as a pillar of staying competitive in the new digital world.
As companies answer the demands of the hyperconnected modern society, we can expect 2023 to bring wide standardization and adoption of work-from-anywhere cybersecurity standards.
#2 – Emergence of always-on technologies
Human error is a major threat to cybersecurity, despite all efforts to educate users and enact stricter laws for data protection.
Not so long ago, we believed that the only way to bulwark company data was by layering perimeter, network, and endpoint security – something far beyond the reach of small organizations both in terms of cost and management complexity.
But now we’re seeing efforts to simplify IT, deliver low-code solutions, easy deployment, even zero-management solutions.
This user-first approach is what sets modern and effective tools apart from the legacy ones. They make it their goal to provide always-on, quiet and invisible protection that doesn't require user interaction, runs in the background, enforces policies automatically, reduces threat surface and works in cloud/SaaS-first environments.
#3 – Standardization of the digital supply chain security
Until less than a century ago manufacturers would reduce costs and maintain quality control by reducing the number of parts sourced from a supplier.
But in our post-industrial digital world, most companies focus on their narrow expertise and source much of their "parts" from third parties, which allows them to provide the best quality service, reduce development time, and maximize ROI.
Such parts can be anything from an accounting system, CRM, stock photos, development framework, infrastructure as a service, or IT consulting services.
This leaves the average company with dozens of SaaS solutions, of which many store their login credentials, financial or customer data, or other valuable assets that can be exploited to gain access. The sheer number of available entry points to the network is unprecedented.
In response, companies are learning to be thorough in due diligence before signing a contract with a supplier. They expect transparent disclosure of the security standards and require compliance with data protection laws.
#4 – Phishing attacks targeting legitimate services
Phishing attacks are a steady threat that is growing in volume and sophistication.
Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is cited as a must-have against phishing attacks, but attackers can now use proxies (man-in-the-middle) to mimic MFA, and overcome what has long stood as the main safeguard against identity theft.
It's hard to prevent such attacks, which means companies are investing in rigorous and regular education of users, using multiple layers of authentication, enforcing zero trust, access privilege segmentation, and regular backups.
#5 – Mobile devices as an attack vector
Smaller companies with limited IT resources have been neglecting mobile device protection.
But as their workers have moved to home offices, they just use whatever device they have at hand, including personal ones over which the employer has little to no control.
This has also been enabled by the increasing performance of small devices, such as smartphones, and wider use of SaaS applications accessible via a web browser and often optimized for small screens.
Without policies for personal device use and very limited protection of company mobile assets, the attack surface increases dramatically.
But employers can still reduce the risk without infringing on productivity or comfort by adopting technologies that enforce compliance on all devices, and which use identity-based user authentication enhanced by SSO, MFA, access control, or threat detection.
Conclusion
As remote work becomes a standard mode of work for a stable portion of employees, it should be the number-one priority for organizations to allow their employees to work securely and efficiently from anywhere.
Robust security protocols in place, remote work can be a powerful enabler for business growth and innovation.
