Companies Know They Have Been Hacked But Only Half Do Something About It

Computer hacks of corporate systems are on the rise, and while KPMG found 80 percent of organizations have confirmed their systems have been hacked, only half spend the money and time to invest in cybersecurity.

According to KPMG’s Consumer Loss Barometer report, eight out of 10 companies said they have been hacked or compromised by a cyberattack during the last two years, but of the 403 CIOs, CISOs and CTOs surveyed, only half said they invested in technology to keep the bad guys out.

“We’re still seeing companies taking a passive or reactive approach toward cybersecurity, when, in fact, cyber should be a top-line business issue thought about and practiced company-wide,” said Greg Bell, leader of KPMG’s U.S. cyber practice, in an interview.

KPMG found that, while it seems like a no-brainer that companies would want to invest the time and money in securing their systems, many CIOs are tasked with putting innovation ahead of cybersecurity. After all, in this data- and technology-driven era, companies who rest on their laurels are sure to be beat out by the competition. At the same time, they are on the hunt for the next greatest thing that will propel them to, say, Pokémon GO status.

But it is that underinvestment in security that means the company has less of a talented staff to protect the company and its systems from new and emerging threats, such as ransomware. Ransomware happens when a hacker hijacks a company’s servers and holds all the data ransom. Those types of attacks are increasing at companies of all sizes, and without investment in the latest cybersecurity technology, companies won’t be able to defend against that threat and other up-and-coming ones.

“The need to move fast is critical, so companies need to be more agile and embrace some of these newer and more disruptive technologies and look to add more value-added services to their product and service mix,” Bell said in the interview. “The problem is that most cybersecurity teams can’t align their value against that. It’s a challenge that most of our clients have struggled with over the last several years.”