A new quarterly Cybersecurity Market Report was published by Cybersecurity Ventures, projecting $1 trillion will be spent on cybersecurity between 2017 and 2021. According to Steve Morgan, founder and editor-in-chief of Cybersecurity Ventures, the increase in cybercrime, such as ransomware and malware, and the large number of digital devices being rapidly deployed by organizations and consumers, are making it difficult for IT analysts to accurately project spending.
“Many corporations are hesitant to announce breaches they’ve suffered — and the amounts of their increased security budgets — for fears of reputational damage and of antagonizing cybercriminals,” Morgan said. “By 2020, we expect IT analysts covering cybersecurity will be predicting five-year spending forecasts (to 2025) at well over $1 trillion.”
One industry in particular that hasn’t shied away from sharing its affinity for cybersecurity is financial services. In an SEC Form 10-Q last year, JPMorgan indicated it planned to increase its annual budget to battle cybersecurity from $250 million to $500 million. “In each of 2015 and 2016, the Firm expects its annual cybersecurity spending to be nearly double what it was in 2014 in order to enhance its defense capabilities. These enhancements will include more robust testing, advanced analytics and improved technology coverage.”
In an interview last year, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said that they are not capping themselves when it comes to fighting cybercrime. It’s “the only place in the company that doesn’t have a budget constraint…you’ve got to be willing to do what it takes.”
The financial services industry, as a whole, will continue to increase their budgets to fight cybercrime. Just last month, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said the central bank is “supervising financial institutions’ ability to address cyber threats” and that there are “standards” that are expected to be met.
Hat tip to Leon Kuperman of ZENEDGE for alerting me to the new cybersecurity report.
