Rob Rashotte , Vice President , Global Training & Technical Field Enablement at Fortinet , tells us why closing risk management strategy gaps , including addressing critical resources like staffing , is vital to protect any organisation effectively .

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All it takes is a single cyber-incident to open any organisation to new threats and vulnerabilities . For example , following a breach , threat actors now have valuable insights about an enterprise ’ s environment that they can use to craft a new attack . Others may attempt to capitalise on a previous breach , viewing a recently compromised organisation as low-hanging fruit . While understanding and taking steps to mitigate these risks is crucial , what is often even more concerning , especially to those in C-level positions and on the board of directors , is the potential impact these incidents can have on business operations .

That ’ s why closing risk management strategy gaps , including addressing critical resources like staffing , is vital to protect any organisation effectively .

The skills shortage increases cyber-risks , leading to new threats and vulnerabilities

Cybercriminals continue to advance their operations , refining well-known attack methods and using Generative AI to speed their efforts . Therefore , it ’ s not surprising that cybersecurity incidents are rising worldwide . According to Fortinet ’ s 2024 Cybersecurity Skills Gap Report , almost 90 % of businesses experienced one or more security breaches last year , up from 84 % in 2024 and 80 % in 2021 . The dire need for skilled cybersecurity professionals puts businesses at a disadvantage : Nearly three-quarters of leaders agree that the cybersecurity skills gap creates additional risks for their enterprise .

Breaches are equally common across all regions , with the average number of breaches per organisation in Asia Pacific being the highest ( 3.18 ) and Latin America being the lowest ( 2.79 ). And the percentage of organisations that report suffering no breaches at all continues to shrink- just 13 % of businesses had zero breaches in 2023 compared to 15 % the year before and 20 % in 2021 .

As breaches rise , the threat landscape remains familiar

While organisations increasingly fall victim to cybercriminals , the attacks used to compromise networks are familiar to defenders .

Malware , phishing and web attacks combined accounted for 80 % of all attacks organisations experienced yearly . Password attacks were more common in North America and leaders in APAC experienced a higher percentage of phishing and web attacks than in other regions .

Rob Rashotte , Vice President , Global Training & Technical Field Enablement at Fortinet

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