Leading cybersecurity firm, Help AG, has unveiled its State of the Market Report 2023, with insights into the evolving landscape of cybersecurity and the key challenges faced by organisations in the Middle East.
The report highlights the top areas of investment, service-centric business evolution, prevalent cyber threats, vulnerabilities, and the tech trends that will shape the industry in 2023 and beyond.
Key areas of investment
Help AG’s report reveals a significant increase in prices of cybersecurity solutions globally, with some original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) raising their prices by over 30 percent compared to 2021. In response, organisations are focusing on consolidating their cybersecurity estates to reduce complexity and ensure better predictability of budgets. Longer-term contracts, such as Enterprise License Agreements (ELAs), are being utilised to achieve this goal.
The report also highlights the rise in investments in locally hosted solutions and services, particularly in Security Service Edge (SSE) and OT/IoT security, as well as Managed Cyber Defense for cyber resilience and compliance.
Service-centric business evolution
The shift towards a services-led cybersecurity approach is gaining momentum, offering organisations several advantages over traditional in-house models. The report emphasizes the benefits of accessing round-the-clock expertise, advanced technologies, and streamlined processes under a predictable operational expenditure (OPEX) payment model.
Emerging trends in Cybersecurity as a Service (CaaS) include leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), increased adoption of Security Service Edge (SSE), Cybersecurity Compliance as a Service, and Incident Response as a Service (IRaaS).
Top cyber threats
The State of the Market Report highlights the escalating concern of cyber threats for organisations across the region. In 2022, the landscape was characterised by a surge in advanced persistent threats (APTs), malware attacks, and cybercrime. Human factors, misconfiguration of default credentials, and missing patches were among the major risks faced by organisations.
Ransomware and phishing attacks have also become more sophisticated, employing tactics like double extortion and social engineering. Additionally, DDoS attacks have grown in both complexity and diversity, with UAE businesses experiencing high-volume attacks exceeding 40Gbps.
Top vulnerabilities
The report reveals a record-high of 26,000+ vulnerabilities reported in 2022, as per the NIST National Vulnerability Database (NVD). Improper configuration and device settings emerged as top risks, along with the use of weak and insecure protocols, especially on externally facing assets. Help AG provides key recommendations for organizations to address these vulnerabilities in 2023, focusing on best practices and mitigation strategies.
Tech trends 2023 and beyond
The report outlines several tech trends that will shape the cybersecurity landscape in the coming years. Integrated Cyber Defense is highlighted as crucial to combat increasingly numerous and sophisticated threats.
Help AG’s UNIFY platform is introduced as an integrated cyber defense solution, offering comprehensive capabilities such as visibility, collaboration, orchestration, and intelligent automation. The importance of Secure Cloud Enablement, Security Services Edge (SSE), Data and Identity Protection, and IoT Security is also emphasized.
Stephan Berner, CEO of Help AG, stated, “Cybersecurity is the crucial component of successful digital transformation and needs to be built in from day zero and beyond.” He emphasized the importance of innovation, agility, and resilience in the hyperconnected era. Nicolai Solling, CTO of Help AG, highlighted the need for collaboration and knowledge-sharing among public and private sectors to defend against cyber threats effectively.
The State of the Market Report 2023 by Help AG provides organisations in the Middle East with vital intelligence to strengthen their cybersecurity defenses, enabling them to protect against evolving threats and ensure a secure digital environment.
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