Spending on Cybersecurity Predicted to Hit the Trillion Mark by 2021

It’s apparent that the fight against cyber attacks is a costly one, with corporations, government agencies and small businesses grappling with how to stay a step ahead of hackers. That’s why recent projections have emerged that spending on cybersecurity will hit $1 trillion from 2017 to 2021.

According to the Cybersecurity Market Report released by Cybersecurity Ventures said the rise in cybercrime will rise dramatically, with malware shifting from PCs and laptops to tablets and smartphones, and attacks being directed with Internet of Things (IoT) products, such as remote garage door openers, security systems and other connected household products that are underprotected.

The research firm Gartner also projected that IT security spending worldwide will hit $2.77 trillion through 2019, which represents a 7.8 percent CAGR — less than the 12 to 15 percent year-over-year growth predicted by Cybersecurity Ventures.

In the article published by CSO, IBM CEO Ginni Rometty told attendees at the Security Summit in New York City that data is considered the “world’s new natural resource.” As a result, “cyber crime by definition, is the greatest threat to every profession, every industry, every company in the world.”

Responding to the threat

While many initiatives are underway to beef up cybersecurity, many IT and business professionals see a gap in the expertise of security specialists who can fight off the aggressive attacks.

As part of a recent initiative, Cisco has developed a $10 million scholarship fund to train IT security specialists to deal with the challenges of the future. The Global Cybersecurity Scholarship Program, will provide cyber security training for 10,000 applicants during the two-year program.

“The whole purpose is to increase the talent pool in the industry,” Tejas Vashi, senior director of product strategy at Cisco, said in an article for The Reg. “The problem is that the industry and threat landscape is evolving so quickly that even people who came in two years ago need to be reskilling and updating their skills.”

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Alex Carroll

Managing Member at Lifeline Data Centers

Alex, co-owner, is responsible for all real estate, construction and mission critical facilities: hardened buildings, power systems, cooling systems, fire suppression, and environmentals. Alex also manages relationships with the telecommunications providers and has an extensive background in IT infrastructure support, database administration and software design and development. Alex architected Lifeline’s proprietary GRCA system and is hands-on every day in the data center.