FEATURE : CLOUD SECURITY
Cybersecurity strategies for African cloud operations
The key to overcoming challenges lies in aligning operational tools , processes , personnel , by investing in the right cloud management platform , which can help in creating a secure , compliant , cost-efficient network , says Rodney Kinchington and Todd Schoeman at BT .
In the hyper-connected post-pandemic world , we have seen an increase in the number of businesses embracing cloud infrastructure in a race to digitise their operations . According to Flexera ’ s State of the Cloud 2023 report , 65 % of those surveyed were heavy cloud users , compared to 63 % in 2022 , and business leaders expected cloud spending to increase by an average of 29 % in the next year .
While this digital transformation offers early benefits , it also ushers in new and increasingly complex cybersecurity threats . A study conducted by Cybersecurity Ventures noted that the cost of cybercrime worldwide is predicted to reach US $ 8 trillion in 2023 and will increase to US $ 10.5 trillion in 2025 .
This is not surprising given the growing need to respond to ever expanding cybersecurity threats , as well as the rising numbers of data breaches and their associated costs .
According to IBM ’ s data breach report , the global average cost of a data breach in 2023 was US $ 4.45 million . Closer to home , the same research indicates that the average data breach cost for South African organisations reached over US $ 2.63 million , R49.45 million in 2023 .
South Africa ’ s financial sector had experienced the highest average cost of data breaches totalling US $ 3.89 million , R73.1 million , followed by the industrial and services sectors at US $ 3.79 million , R71.37 million and US $ 3.12 million , R58.78 million , respectively .
Cloud adoption
In the realm of cloud adoption , businesses are presented with a range of strategies , single-cloud , multicloud , and hybrid-cloud , all with their unique merits . Businesses have different needs , and adoption of the optimal cloud model relies heavily on the complexity , scale and compliance of their requirements .
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