In a bid to educate themselves about the latest cyber threats being unleashed from the dark web, Kaspersky research finds that 47% of all business leaders across EU – nearly half of which in the UK(45%) – are reliant on news stories, industry blogs, and social media to source threat intelligence on the most pressing cybersecurity issues within large organisations. The findings also reveal an overall ‘work in progress’, with cybersecurity awareness still needing to translate into understanding, as 38% of C-Suite respondents stated that they still find terms like malware, phishing, and ransomware to be confusing.
For people living under oppressive regimes that block large parts of the internet, dark webs are a lifeline that provide invaluable access to information and protection from persecution. But dark webs are also extremely sophisticated and complex networks used for nefarious activities, providing an ideal environment for criminals to thrive, away from the prying eyes of the authorities. Dark webs’ lack of standard webpage indexing renders them unsearchable for popular search tools, requiring high levels of expertise to be able to decipher and reverse-engineer ongoing cybercriminal activity in various languages.
Yet, while publicly available information is providing an essential service to keep up to date with the latest issues, a reliance on consuming information about the most ‘popular’ trending new stories might be limiting the C-Suite from developing a holistic understanding of the true nature of threats to their business, and how to act against them. To develop a better understanding, just 40% of C-level respondents stated that they currently use external experts to gather intelligence on the latest sophisticated threats emerging from the dark web.
“Our research paints a picture of a C-Suite that needs help in understanding the security threats that are facing their businesses every day. The consumption of publicly available resources, and increased budget being made available for training is so important to help develop awareness, but the threat landscape is a complex and ever evolving place consisting of some of the most highly motivated and technologically sophisticated criminals on the planet,” explained David Emm, Senior Security Researcher, Kaspersky. “The reality is that without a layered approach to cybersecurity that combines publicly available news resources and social media awareness, with actionable intelligence interpreted from the depths of the dark web by experts who speak the language of cybercrime, organisations are only half-arming themselves against the threat.”
Kaspersky ‘Separated by a common language: is the C-Suite able to decipher and act upon the real threat of cyberattacks?’ follows a total of 1,800 interviews with C-level decision-makers in large enterprises of 1,000 or more employees across 13 countries. The research saw respondents asked about cybersecurity within their organization, the measures taken to protect themselves, and the barriers they face as a management team.
To download a copy of the report, please visit here.
