Breaches decline as confidence in cybersecurity grows

security meter

When major cybersecurity incidents make the headlines it's easy to assume that defenders are fighting a losing battle, but in fact a new report from threat intelligence company DomainTools shows that in breaches are down and confidence in security programs is up.

More than 500 cybersecurity professionals were surveyed and the results show 30 percent of respondents gave their program an 'A' grade this year, doubling over two years from 15 percent in 2017. Less than four percent reported a 'D' or 'F'.

Also 53 percent of organizations now carry out security operations with a full in-house security operations center, up 10 percent over 2017. Automation is having an effect too, with 88 percent strongly agreeing or agreeing that automation has improved their staff's technical skills and general knowledge of cybersecurity. Now 22 percent of all organizations have a high level of automation compared to 45 percent of grade A ranked organizations

There's a greater emphasis on proactive threat hunting too. 61 percent of organizations now utilize a threat intelligence platform, up 20 percent since the 2018 report. 75 percent of grade A organizations rely on threat intelligence platforms.

Increases in the use of automation, in-house SOCs and threat intelligence platforms mean analysts are able to detect and respond to threats faster. 51 percent of organizations with an A grade say they are able to detect active or suspected cyberattacks several times throughout the day.

Malware, spearphishing, and business email compromise are the three most predominant forms of attack, with ransomware and DDoS attacks both showing 10 percent declines since 2017.

"Cyber threats remain relentless and continue to evolve in complexity, so it is reassuring to see that the confidence of security teams in their security posture is growing in parallel with their success in defending against the latest attacks," says Tarik Saleh, senior security engineer and malware researcher at DomainTools. "It is also exciting to see the results of investments in automation and in-house SOCs paying off as the key components of driving this progress forward."

You can find the full report on the DomainTools site.

Image Credit: donscarpo / depositphotos.com

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