Most UK businesses feel vulnerable to cyber threats, despite increased security spending

According to Thales' new report almost two thirds (63 percent) of businesses in the UK increased their cyber security spending this year, which is a jump from last year's 54 percent.

However, despite this, 43 percent were breached last year (Thales fails to mention the percentage difference compared to a year earlier, though). More than four fifths (84 percent) still feel vulnerable to threats, with 20 percent feeling "very" or "extremely" vulnerable.

There are some strange conclusions in the report, too. For example, the majority of businesses are using traditional cyber security methods, like network and endpoint security solutions. On the other hand, 91 percent use sensitive data in advanced technology environments, such as the cloud.

Saas (51 percent), IaaS (47 percent) and PaaS (37 percent) are the leading environments for this usage.

"It is certainly encouraging to see that more UK businesses understand the value encryption has in protecting valuable data and enabling digital transformation. But there is still more work to be done in incentivizing the remaining 55 percent of UK firms to bolster their security strategies. In today’s increasingly complex threat landscape, robust IT strategies must be in place to protect data in all its forms, wherever it is created, shared or stored."

Thales' report is based on a poll of 100 IT security professionals from UK organizations.

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