Get All Access for $5/mo

Majority of Indian IT Security Professionals See Nation-State Sponsored Attacks As Cause of Concern India at 97 per cent comes much higher than the global average for experiencing a sense of risk from nation-state threats, a CrowdStrike survey shows

By Debroop Roy

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

Shutterstock.com

In the last few decades, cybersecurity and data have become the new weapons of supremacy. Countries across the world now spend millions of dollars to tighten online security, notwithstanding naysayers who believe no data on the internet is truly secure.

And so it was not a surprise when a recent study by US cyber technology firm CrowdStrike found that 83 per cent of all respondents to their survey believe attacks sponsored by nation-states pose clear danger to organizations in their country.

India at 97 per cent and Singapore at 92 per cent come much higher than the global average for experiencing a sense of risk from nation-state threats.

The survey had responses from 1900 senior information technology (IT) decision-makers and IT security professionals in 11 countries including the US and Singapore. Of the total number, 300 were from India.

Are Companies Doing Enough?

Among the most recent of online security breaches was the menace of spyware Pegasus which attacked 1,400 WhatsApp users across the world, targeting journalists and activists.

The Facebook-owned messaging platform confirmed that 121 users in India were affected by the software, made by Israeli-based firm NSO, with 20 of them having their phones breached.

The CrowdStrike survey respondents said that it took them 162 hours or about seven days on average to detect, investigate and contain a cybersecurity incident It takes 31 hours on average to contain an attack once detected and investigated.

95 per cent of the respondents believe more needs to be done to stop an intruder once they were in the network.

Recommendations

CrowdStrike recommends organizations to use the 1-10-60 rule where the threat is detected in one minute, investigated in ten minutes and contained in an hour.

The survey found that only 11 per cent of respondent organizations can detect in under one minute, 9 per cent can investigate in ten minutes, while 33 per cent can contain in 60 minutes. Only 5 per cent could do all three.

"Organizations are challenged to achieve the kind of speed required to match sophisticated nation-state and eCrime adversaries known to be targeting organizations," said Thomas Etheridge, vice-president of CrowdStrike Services.

Among other things, organizations need to employ teams that have threat-hunting capabilities and employ next-generation tech in order to keep themselves safe, Crowdstrike said.

Debroop Roy

Former Correspondent

Covering the start-up ecosystem in and around Bangalore. Formerly an energy reporter at Reuters. A film, cricket buff who also writes fiction on weekends.
News and Trends

Recur Club Announces Credit Offerings for Startups Beyond Series A and SMEs

In FY 24–25, the platform also plans to deploy an additional INR 2000 crores through its Recur Swift program for startups.

News and Trends

Indian Venture Ecosystem Poised for Global Ascent: Recovery, IPO Resurgence, and 'Building for Bharat' to Define 2025

India's GDP is poised to scale from USD 4 trillion to USD 8 trillion over the next decade and will offer a playground that is remarkable for both founders and venture capital (VC) firms, said Pranav Pai, Founding Partner and CIO at 3one4 Capital.

News and Trends

Uber Launches Moto Women in Bengaluru, Connecting Female Riders with Female Drivers

Uber Moto Women aims to ensure safety with real-time trip sharing, anonymised contact details, and RideCheck monitoring for irregularities. It also offers 24x7 priority support via Uber's Safety Helpline for women riders and drivers.

News and Trends

Talent, Digital Infra, Policy, and Startups Driving India's GCC Ecosystem

By leveraging its demographic dividend and evolving policies, India is uniquely positioned to become the preferred choice for global enterprises seeking scalability, resilience, and a future-ready operational base.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

News and Trends

Key Cybersecurity Trends to Track as Threats Evolve

India has lost INR 11,333 crore to cyber fraud in just the first nine months of 2024. Nevertheless, with increasing cyber threats and public awareness, companies are taking proactive steps to safeguard their networks and devices.