GEC NEWS WIREMicrosoft brought together industry experts and prominent technology decision-makers at a media event in Dubai, to demonstrate how Gulf-based organizations can use cloud services to protect themselves against cyber-threats.
The GCC region has, over the past decade, become a hot zone for cyber-attacks, due to the acceleration of Internet and mobile penetration and relatively high average net worth among its citizenry. In 2017, the popularity of the Internet of Things (IoT) is expected to increase the number of endpoints available to cyber-criminals and hacktivists, leading to a marked surge in breaches.
As the region’s enterprises and public bodies continue to adopt technologies like cloud computing to digitally transform their businesses, Microsoft believes service providers and their customers will need to address the demand for fresh policies and procedures that consider the evolving threat landscape.
Cyber-attacks are responsible for widespread disruption and losses in productivity and growth. Global estimates vary, but figures are routinely reported in the range of hundreds of billions of dollars. One estimate predicts the global cyber-security market to be worth more than $120 billion in 2017 – a 35-fold increase over the past 13 years – and to reach more than $1 trillion cumulatively over the next five years.
“The threat landscape evolves with the technology ecosystem and so cybersecurity is a top priority for Microsoft,” said Mohammed Arif, Windows & Devices Business Group Lead, Microsoft Gulf. “As targets for attacks grow, we expect the number of breach attempts to increase. The Microsoft cloud incorporates security at every level and in every scenario. We encrypt data to the highest standard, whether at rest or in transit to or from our data centers. Whatever the size or nature of your organization, we can tailor a cyber-security solution that keeps you safe but allows you to operate, meaning security does not get in the way of your growth.
