Global Organizations Concerned Digital Attack Surface is Spiralling Out of Control

Rhea-AI Summary

Trend Micro's latest global study reveals significant concerns among organizations regarding their expanding digital attack surface, impacting risk management efforts. The survey, conducted with 6,297 IT and business decision-makers across 29 countries, found that 73% worry about their evolving attack surface.

Visibility issues were highlighted, with 62% admitting to blind spots in security measures. Furthermore, over half of the organizations feel their risk exposure assessment methods need improvement, suggesting a pressing need for unified approaches to enhance security management.

Positive

• 73% of organizations are concerned about their growing attack surface, indicating awareness of cybersecurity risks.
• Trend Micro's survey involves a substantial sample size of 6,297 decision-makers, enhancing the credibility of the study.

Negative

• 62% of organizations report having blind spots that hinder security, primarily due to inadequate visibility in cloud environments.
• 54% of global organizations feel their risk assessment methods are not sophisticated enough, highlighting a significant gap in cybersecurity preparedness.

Trend Micro study reveals visibility and control gaps are undermining security

DALLAS, June 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Trend Micro Incorporated (TYO: 4704; TSE: 4704), the leader in cloud security, today announced the findings of a new global study indicating that organizations are struggling to define and secure an expanding cyber-attack surface, hampering risk management efforts.

Trend Micro surveyed 6297 IT and business decision makers across 29 countries to compile the study. To read a full copy of the report, please visit: https://www.trendmicro.com/explore/trend_global_risk_research_2

The study revealed that three-quarters (73%) of global organizations are worried about their growing attack surface. Over a third (37%) said it is "constantly evolving and messy," with only half (51%) able to fully define its extent.

Over two-fifths (43%) of respondents went further, admitting the digital attack surface is "spiralling out of control."

Visibility challenges appear to be the main reason organizations are struggling to manage and understand cyber risk in these environments.

Almost two-thirds (62%) said they have blind spots that hamper security, with cloud environments cited as the most opaque. On average, respondents estimated having just 62% visibility of their attack surface.

These challenges are multiplied in global organizations. Two-thirds (65%) of respondents claimed that being an international enterprise that spans multiple jurisdictions makes managing the attack surface harder.

Yet a quarter (24%) are still mapping their systems manually and 29% do so regionally—which can create further silos and visibility gaps.

"IT modernization over the past two years was a necessary response to the ravages of the pandemic, but in many cases it unwittingly expanded the digital attack surface, giving threat actors more opportunities to compromise key assets," said Bharat Mistry, Technical Director at Trend Micro. "A unified, platform-based approach is the best way to minimize visibility gaps, enhance risk assessments and improve protection across these complex, distributed IT environments."

The study also revealed that over half (54%) of global organizations don't believe their method of assessing risk exposure is sophisticated enough. This is borne out in other findings:

• Only 45% have a completely well-defined way to assess risk exposure
• More than a third (35%) only review/update their exposure monthly or less frequently
• Just 23% review risk exposure daily
• Keeping up to date with the ever-changing attack surface is the top area organizations struggle with

About Trend Micro
Trend Micro, a global cybersecurity leader, helps make the world safe for exchanging digital information. Fueled by decades of security expertise, global threat research, and continuous innovation, Trend Micro's cybersecurity platform protects hundreds of thousands of organizations and millions of individuals across clouds, networks, devices, and endpoints. As a leader in cloud and enterprise cybersecurity, the platform delivers a powerful range of advanced threat defense techniques optimized for environments like AWS, Microsoft, and Google, and central visibility for better, faster detection and response. With 7,000 employees across 65 countries, Trend Micro enables organizations to simplify and secure their connected world. www.TrendMicro.com.  

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SOURCE Trend Micro Incorporated

FAQ

What were the main findings of Trend Micro's study on cybersecurity?

Trend Micro's study revealed that 73% of organizations are concerned about their growing digital attack surface, with 62% reporting blind spots in their security.

How many organizations participated in Trend Micro's cybersecurity study?

The study included 6,297 IT and business decision-makers from 29 countries.

What percentage of organizations struggle with visibility in cloud environments according to Trend Micro?

62% of organizations indicated they have visibility challenges that hamper security.

How many organizations believe their risk assessment methods are lacking?

54% of organizations do not believe their risk assessment methods are sophisticated enough.

What is the significance of the findings from Trend Micro's study?

The findings underscore the critical challenges organizations face in managing cyber risk and highlight the need for improved visibility and risk assessment strategies.