Intelligent CISO Issue 27 | Page 6

news Arcserve research uncovers links between ransomware and brand loyalty rcserve Southern Africa has A revealed the results of research conducted by Arcserve, a data and ransomware protection provider. The research aimed to measure how cybercrime influences purchasing behaviour and brand loyalty. It found that while most consumers are taking necessary security precautions to protect their online accounts, businesses may not be doing enough to protect their information – inadvertently driving sales to competitors that can. The survey of nearly 2,000 consumers across North America, the United Kingdom, France and Germany, found that 70% of respondents believe businesses aren’t doing enough to adequately secure their personal information and assume it has been compromised without them knowing. As consumers become more educated and cyberattacks become well-known, perceived trust becomes more influential in their purchasing decisions, with the study also finding that 59% of consumers would likely avoid doing business with an organisation that had experienced a cyberattack in the past year. Byron Horn-Botha, Arcserve Southern Africa Lead: Channel and Partnerships, said the trends displayed in this international survey are also relevant to the South African market. “The survey results deliver a stark cautionary message to all businesses to prioritise cybersecurity and Disaster Recovery (DR) plans or lose customer loyalty and trade. Arcserve recommends a two-pronged approach where cybersecurity and DR are strategically interlinked in business operations,” said Horn-Botha. KASPERSKY AND SAUDI FEDERATION FOR CYBERSECURITY, PROGRAMMING AND DRONES, LINK-UP ON CYBERSECURITY TRAINING aspersky, a global K cybersecurity solutions provider, has collaborated with the Saudi Federation for Cybersecurity, Programming and Drones (SAFCSP), to conduct a three-day entry-level course on cybersecurity as part of Cyberhub courses programme for university students across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This combined effort was an educational initiative aimed at increasing students’ knowledge of information security, its main concepts and mechanisms and tools for protection against cyberthreats. More than 1,500 students, with no prior training on cybersecurity, participated in the programme. Amir Kanaan, Managing Director for the Middle East, Turkey and Africa at Kaspersky, said: “This initiative is another step towards improving cybersecurity training among the youth of today, and we appreciate SAFCSP’s efforts in widening its reach. “The number of students who attended shows that there is significant awareness about cyberthreats and interest in building cybersecurity skills. With initiatives such as this, we are able to invest in the future of cybersecurity for the region.” Mohammed Alghamdi, Cybersecurity Track Manager at SAFCSP, said: “We are committed towards providing the young people of today with the knowledge that they need to create a cyber-immune world and build the Saudi cybersecurity capabilities to defend against cyberthreats.” 6 Issue 27 | www.intelligentciso.com