Cyber attacks pose a greater national threat than physical attacks, survey finds

Some 80% of C-level executives and IT security professionals believe that cyber attacks pose a greater risk to their nation than physical attacks, Cyber-Ark’s seventh annual Advanced Threat Survey has found.

The survey, based on 989 IT security and C-level executives (chief executives, chief information officers, CSO) across North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific (APAC), found that more than half of businesses believe that hackers are already inside their networks and 57% put ‘too much faith in perimeter security’.

In addition, 61% of respondents believe that government and legislative action can help protect critical infrastructure against advanced threats. However, only 57%  believe legislation will be an effective tool in the US – compared to 64% of respondents in Europe and 61% in APAC.

The report warned that advanced attacks are almost always precipitated by perimeter-oriented tactical aggressions, such as phishing attempts. 

It said: “The increasing ease with which attackers are breaching the enterprise perimeter is eroding confidence in perimeter security.”

It found that 57% of respondents believe their company puts too much faith in perimeter security.

Cyber-Ark chief marketing officer John Worrall said: “People around the world are acutely aware of the global threat cyber-attacks represent.  Cyber attackers have repeatedly demonstrated the ability to disrupt national financial systems, cause harm to critical infrastructure and severely damage businesses and economies.

“To achieve their goals, outside attackers must steal the privileged credentials of an authorised user to gain the access necessary to meet their objectives. This level of threat requires a proactive approach to security that protects and monitors the access points to the critical data and assets that attackers are targeting.”