BY Richard Summerfield
A new report suggests that attacks on smart supply chains, medical equipment and the exploitation of real-time operating systems (RTOS) will be the key issues facing companies this year.
‘Cybersecurity Trends for 2020’, the seventh annual report by testing, inspection and certification services provider TÜV Rheinland, is a collaboration between cyber security experts globally, and examines cyber security challenges companies will face in 2020.
Technological developments and changing consumer trends are changing the paradigm for many companies. For example, as the number of smart devices in private households increase, so too do the opportunities for cyber criminals to attack. And as the report notes: “Uncontrolled access to personal data undermines confidence in the digital society. The logistics industry and private vehicles are increasingly being targeted by hackers.”
“From our point of view, it is particularly serious that cybercrime is increasingly affecting our personal security and the stability of society as a whole,” explains Petr Láhner, business executive vice president for the business stream industry service and cyber security at TÜV Rheinland. “One of the reasons for this is that digital systems are finding their way into more and more areas of our daily lives. Digitalisation offers many advantages - but it is important that these systems and thus the people are safe from attacks.”
The report identifies seven top cyber security trends which companies must aware of in 2020 – (i) companies having uncontrolled access to personal data carries the risk of destabilising the digital society; (ii) smart consumer devices are spreading faster than they can be secured, (iii) the trend toward owning a medical device increases the risk of an internet health crisis; (iv) vehicles and transport infrastructure are new targets for cyber attacks; (v) hackers target smart supply chains; (vi) threats to shipping are no longer just a theoretical threat but a reality; and (vii) vulnerabilities in real-time operating systems could herald the end of the patch age.
Report: Cybersecurity Trends for 2020
