F leader driving the convergence of networking and security , has released its annual 2024 Security Awareness and Training Global Research Report , highlighting the crucial role a cyberaware workforce plays in managing and mitigating organisational risk .
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Fortinet report finds nearly 78 % of UAE organisations say employees lack fundamental security awareness
New research highlights the connection between increased organisation-wide cyber awareness and decreased organisational risk . teaching employees how to recognise and avoid falling victim to these attacks . ortinet , a global cybersecurity
F leader driving the convergence of networking and security , has released its annual 2024 Security Awareness and Training Global Research Report , highlighting the crucial role a cyberaware workforce plays in managing and mitigating organisational risk .
“ Our latest research highlights key trends within the United Arab Emirates , showing significant progress in the adoption of AIdriven security solutions ,” said Alain Penel , Vice President – Middle East , Turkey and CIS at Fortinet . “ According to the findings , 32 % of respondents in the UAE are in the process of implementing AI security measures , while 68 % have already integrated these technologies into their systems . These advancements reflect the region ’ s proactive approach to enhancing cybersecurity resilience and awareness , reinforcing the UAE ’ s position as a leader in security innovation across the Middle East .”
Key findings from the global report include :
• Employees can be an organisation ’ s first line of defence , but leaders are increasingly worried that their employees lack security awareness . Nearly 78 % of those surveyed believe their employees lack critical cybersecurity knowledge , up from 56 % in 2023
• Leaders recognise the importance of security awareness training but believe specific attributes make some training programmes more effective than others . Three-quarters of leaders say they plan their security awareness campaigns , delivering content monthly ( 38 %) or quarterly ( 54 %). Executives also point to high-quality content playing a leading role in the success or failure of the programme .
The latest threats that employees must battle
One prominent way cybercriminals use AI is to make phishing schemes more believable and harder to detect . Because phishing targets individual users directly , organisations are heavily focused on
• End-users remain attractive targets . More than 80 % of organisations faced attacks last year , such as malware , phishing and password attacks that directly targeted individuals
• As attacks evolve , security awareness and training will only become more vital . Nearly all ( 98 %) of those surveyed say their leadership team supports employee security awareness training
• Nearly all respondents ( 98 %) say phishing prevention is a component of their training programmes and plans . Other top training priorities include data security ( 58 %) and privacy ( 48 %)
“ As threat actors harness new technologies like AI to augment the sophistication of their attacks , it ’ s increasingly crucial that employees serve as a robust first line of defence ,” said John Maddison , Chief Marketing Officer at Fortinet . “ Fortinet ’ s new research underscores the importance of creating a culture of cybersecurity and the need to deploy organisation-wide security awareness and training .”
• As malicious actors use AI to increase the volume and velocity of their attacks , leaders believe these threats will be harder for their employees to spot . More than 70 % of respondents in the UAE expect employees to fall victim to AIdriven cyberattacks . While globally , more than 60 % of respondents expect more employees to fall victim to attacks in which cybercriminals use AI . However , the good news is that most respondents globally ( 80 %) also say enterprise-wide knowledge of AI-augmented attacks has made their organisations more open to implementing security awareness and training
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