Cisco report: Australians dealing with more cyberattacks than any other country in Asia Pacific

The majority of Australian organisations are having to deal with up to 5000 cyberattacks a day, according to a new report.

Despite the severe consequences of a breach, over two thirds of the businesses, surveyed by Cisco, said that they had given up trying to stay one step of hackers. Picture: Getty

The majority of Australian organisations are having to deal with up to 5000 cyberattacks a day, more than any other country in the Asia Pacific region, according to a new report by Cisco.

The Cisco 2018 Asia Pacific Security Capabilities benchmark Study, which compares 11 countries and their cybersecurity standing, shows that 90 per cent of Australian companies deal with up to 5,000 threats a day, with 33 per cent of them hit with 100,000 to 150,000 attacks daily. Meanwhile, seven per cent are seeing more than 500,000 threats each day.

The high volume of attacks also exacts a hefty financial toll on business, with the cost of an attack in Australia ranking the most expensive in Asia Pacific region.

According to the survey, 52 per cent of businesses claim breaches cost anywhere between $US1 million to $US5m, while nine per cent claim the cost was more than $US10m. This includes costs from lost revenue, loss of customers, and out of pocket expenses caused by a data breach.

Despite the severe consequences of a breach, over two thirds of the businesses, surveyed by Cisco, said that they had given up trying to stay one step ahead of hackers. The rate of this so-called ‘cyber fatigue’ is much higher here in Australia compared to the rest of the world.

Cisco ANZ’s director of cybersecurity, Steve Moros, said the results of the study highlight both the scale and complexity of the challenge faced by Australian companies in the current cybersecurity landscape.

“The launch of the Notifiable Data Breaches (NBD) scheme early this year, in which organisations have to report the breaches that happen, means that businesses not only risk financial loss but also reputational loss if a breach occurs,” said Mr Moros.

The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s (OAIC) has noted 305 data breaches since the launch of the NDB in February this year, with criminal attacks the largest source of breaches, followed by human error and system faults.

One key problem, highlighted by the study, is the fragmented environment within which organisations have to protect their data assets.

Most organisation work with a number of security vendors to protect their devices and data on the cloud and in-house. The reliance on third party service providers creates a long chain of custody that can be exploited by hackers and also cause delays in service restoration in the case of a data breach.

According to the Cisco study, over half of surveyed organisations (72 per cent) work with more than 10 security vendors, while 12 per cent say they have more than 50 vendors in their businesses.

“This creates an added layer of complexity and increases vulnerability, as having different security products can lengthen the time to detect and contain a breach,” Mr Moros said.

“In order to achieve best cyber practice, everyone from government to vendors, educational institutes to independent bodies, need to collaborate, share information and threat intelligence. When it comes to cyber security, businesses cannot afford to work in silos.”

“Finally, we need to develop local cybersecurity talent so that we have the skills to support the country’s digital drive in a sustainable manner. It’s not a problem that can be tackled in isolation but one we need to tackle as a country,” Mr Moros added.