Kaspersky highlights cybersecurity risks amidst rapid digitisation in South African companies

The level of digitisation was calculated using Kaspersky Business Digitisation Index². The Index takes into account 12 components, including the use of digital document workflow by an organisation, provision of IT trainings for employees, automation of work processes, digital communication with clients, and others.

Specifically, 72% of local respondents in the business digitisation survey indicated they could practice remote work in their organisations, 89% use digital means of communication with clients and 62% try to automate work processes. 68% stated that they had employee trainings on using digital devices and services over the last year. All of these factors contribute to increasing the level of business digitisation in a company.

At the same time however, with business processes becoming more and more digital, business representatives in South Africa highlighted several challenges. A third (35%) of local respondents admitted that they require more cybersecurity training. 75% of respondents felt that there might be cyberespionage taking place within their industry which could result in financial and intellectual property losses, as well as damage to the brand reputation. The same survey also found that 51% of employees feel the need for better digital skills in their work with computers and other digital equipment. A digital skills shortage could also result in significant cybersecurity risks for an organisation.

“With the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and automation, digital literacy of employees must become a priority. For example, the rise of deepfakes can cause significant problems for companies if employees are unable to effectively identify them,” says Andrew Voges, General Manager for Africa at Kaspersky.

"As South African businesses continue to embrace digital transformation, the importance of integrated cybersecurity measures cannot be overstated. At Kaspersky, we remain committed to empowering companies with advanced security solutions and intelligence to navigate the complex cyber landscape effectively. Our aim is to ensure that businesses can leverage the full potential of digitisation while safeguarding their critical assets and maintaining the trust of their customers,” says Voges.

“The cyberthreat results seen in the Kaspersky Business Digitisation survey are a reflection of an increase in cyber risks while adopting emerging technologies for many businesses. What we have also seen from the recent KPMG CEO outlook for Southern Africa; CEOs identify generative AI and cybersecurity among the top 3 risks facing their organisation’s growth prospects ranked along geopolitics. To put this into scale, 81% of Southern African CEOs believe that although GenAI can enhance cybersecurity, it may also pose additional cyber risks. The threat actors have a tactical advantage in the age of AI considering the change in our behaviour in a digital world and the false sense of security amongst businesses. Consequently, prioritising and investing in AI-driven risk management has become a fundamental imperative for businesses,” adds Rupesh Vashist, Cyber Transformation and Incident Response Leader at KPMG in Southern Africa.

To best protect digitised processes within organisations, Kaspersky experts recommend:

• Use solutions like Kaspersky Endpoint Detection and Response Expert and Kaspersky Managed Detection and Response service which help to identify and stop the attack on early stages, before attackers reach their final goals.
• To protect the corporate environment, educate your employees. Dedicated training courses can help, such as the ones provided in the Kaspersky Automated Security Awareness Platform.
• Use a reliable endpoint security solution, such as Kaspersky Endpoint Security for Business that is powered by exploit prevention, behaviour detection and a remediation engine that is able to roll back malicious actions. KESB also has self-defense mechanisms which can prevent its removal by cybercriminals.
• Use the latest Threat Intelligence information to stay aware of actual TTPs used by threat actors. The Kaspersky Threat Intelligence Portal is a single point of access for Kaspersky’s TI, providing cyberattack data and insights gathered by our team for over 26 years.

References:

¹The survey was conducted in August 2023. 2000 business representatives were surveyed in the META region.

²For South Africa, the Index stands at 86 points out of 100.