According to new Citrix data, UAE banks and financial services under enforcement to enhance security policies also reveals 82 percent of IT decision-makers working in banks and FSI are under pressure. This comes as 72 percent of respondents believe the industry’s IT security threats have increased since the COVID-19 epidemic began. Employees are the most likely to press their employers to improve security, with 67 percent of IT professionals reporting pressure from this group, followed by consumers (48 percent), government (45 percent), and shareholders (45 percent) (31 percent ).
Perhaps in response to these expectations, 66 percent of respondents say security has risen to the top of their organization’s priority list in the last 18 months. They are joined by another 31% who say it has been a key priority “for years.”
“It is no surprise that security has become an even greater priority since the pandemic began,” says Amir Sohrabi, Area Vice President for Emerging Markets at Citrix. “As remote work became ubiquitous overnight, and employees were more likely to be distracted by personal and professional stressors, cyberattacks have increased across the globe. This research highlights that both internal and external stakeholders have recognised the challenges, which are especially pertinent in a sector like finance.”
Despite the rise in cyber-attacks and the shifting demands and constraints placed on them, 95 percent of IT decision-makers say they are satisfied with their IT security provisions, with 25% indicating they are “very satisfied.” 86 percent also say that their organization’s IT security teams have “all the capabilities necessary” to deal with today’s difficulties.
This trust may stem, at least in part, from the fact that many businesses are abandoning traditional VPN solutions in favour of Zero Trust, cloud-based services. A total of 46% of respondents had already done so, with another 49% expecting to do so within the next 12 months. A further 6% intends to follow suit in the long run. Improving end-user experience (42 percent), having an agile and secure remote work strategy (39 percent), combining several point products (36 percent), and moving more on-premises solutions to the cloud are the main motivations driving this move (35 percent ).
Furthermore, over the last 18 months, 90 percent of IT decision-makers say they are satisfied with the digital workplace solutions their company has utilised to facilitate remote work.
In response to the requirement to work from home in March 2020, 54 percent of respondents deployed these digital workspace solutions, while another 42 percent had them in place prior to the epidemic.
The remaining 4% intend to deliver digital workspace solutions to their teams in the future.
Virtual desktops and apps (67 percent), video conferencing/streaming (62 percent), and emails are the most popular technology used by organisations to support remote working (57 percent ).
While the majority of IT decision makers believe their organisations have the proper people in place to maintain their present security posture, there may be issues ahead. 87 percent of respondents admit that they will need to employ externally in the future to get the required capabilities, and 87 percent believe that their IT security teams will “need to be fully reskilled” at some time.
Additionally, the study reveals notable shortcomings in broader security training for bank and FSI staff. Security training for all employees at their company is provided less than once a year, according to 31% of respondents, with 1% saying it is provided every six years or less.
“The challenges caused by the pandemic and the pressures put on IT decision-makers by key stakeholder groups, have led to security soaring up the priority list for many financial organisations,” comments Amir Sohrabi. “The last 18 months have clearly been a time of great change, with new technologies being implemented, so it’s highly encouraging to see most IT managers in this sector adapt and accelerate, to ensure they have the correct security posture in place.”
“However, this is no time to get complacent and there is clearly an opportunity for businesses to future-proof their security by upskilling their IT teams and providing regular training for the wider employee group,” he adds. “There has been an alarming increase in cyber-attacks since the start of the pandemic, and many of these come as a result of human error. The importance of dedicated annual training, therefore, cannot be underestimated.”
