Armed with a broad and trusted edge platform, Akamai keeps apps, code, and experiences closer to users — and threats farther away
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“As we’ve moved into an era dominated by financial motivation, Ransomware is the new face of organized crime, and in 2022 we will see these types of attacks get worse before they get better.”
Dr. Robert Blumofe,
CTO,
Akamai
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The Pandemic has forced businesses to shift to online operations and there has been a massive adoption of remote working culture. and online learning, resulting in digitalisation on an unprecedented scale. Along with the shift to online has also come an unacceptable rise in cybersecurity issues.
With rising ransomware cyberattacks on IT infrastructure, businesses have realized the importance of embracing zero tolerance for gaps in their security strategy. They are increasingly investing on strengthening their cybersecurity to secure their crown jewels and their valuable data. This has thrown open a big opportunity for cybersecurity players.
As the India market remains in the eye of a major digital transformation buoyed by a tech-centred Union Budget, SME Channels embarks upon recording the voices of the who’s who of the Cybersecurity landscape.
As part of our effort to make the voices of major security players heard by the channel community, here is the Security Predictions from cybersecurity major Akamai.
In a special interaction with SME Channels, Dr. Robert Blumofe, CTO, Akamai, reveals his organization’s strategy to address growing need for security solutions from customers, his predictions for the cybersecurity sector in 2022 and the market trends that will shape the cybersecurity industry in the days ahead. Edited excerpts…
Please give a brief introduction of your company.
Akamai Technologies, Inc. is the world’s most trusted solution that powers and protects digital experiences online. Akamai is trusted by the world’s most innovative enterprises to secure and deliver their digital experiences, enabling billions of people to live, work, and play every day. With the world’s largest and most trusted edge platform, Akamai keeps apps, code, and experiences closer to users — and threats farther away.
With the pandemic still lurking there, what are the major market trends you are forecasting for 2022?
APIs will be the biggest attack surface targeted by criminals if they’re not already.
The growth of API’s in all aspects of business, coupled with a lack of visibility into the attacks they face means that criminals can compromise organizations far easier and for far longer than better understood targets. Many organizations lack the most basic visibility into their own APIs, hence in 2022, we will see criminals target attack surface more regularly, and organizations will need to modify their security posture to mitigate these vulnerabilities.
The Impact of Ransomware will Get Much Worse Before It Gets Better
Cybercrime is dominated by two types of criminals: the hactivists, who are fairly unsophisticated and easy to protect against; and the nation-states, who are very sophisticated and pretty much impossible to defend against. As we’ve moved into an era dominated by financial motivation, Ransomware is the new face of organized crime, and in 2022 we will see these types of attacks get worse before they get better. While law enforcement is getting stronger to prevent ransomware, it is an alarming issue that will take time to overcome. Better security measures, such as micro-segmentation, aren’t new, but they can significantly reduce the impact on your organization when properly implemented.
Hybrid Workplaces will Mean Hybrid Vulnerabilities
While many organizations have adopted the hybrid working environment, where employees will have the liberty to work from home as easy as it is in an office setup. It has created security complexity while exposing organizations to a potential attack. This includes employee’s consumer devices – like home WiFi routers and smart TVs. Hence, organizations will be forced to address this complexity and decide how to balance corporate security without hampering employee satisfaction.
