Structured data management drives most spending

Structured Databases/Data Management continued driving the largest share of enterprise IT infrastructure spending in the second half of 2022 (2H22), according to the International Data Corporation Worldwide Semi-annual Enterprise Infrastructure Tracker: Workloads. Organizations spent $US7.6 billion on compute and storage hardware infrastructure to support this workload in 2H22, which represents 9.1 per cent of the market total. Year-to-year (YoY) growth was relatively low compared to other workloads with a 6.5 per cent increase in value compared to 2H21. Unstructured Database and HR/Human Capital Management (HCM) saw the highest YoY growth in hardware infrastructure demand with spending growing at 36.7 per cent and 35.4 per cent respectively from 2H21. However, these are also the second and fourth smallest workloads regarding consumption of compute and storage infrastructure, respectively, with Unstructured Database accounting for $US2.4 billion in spending, while HR/Human Capital Management (HCM) accounting for $US2.7 billion in spending.

IDC estimates spending on compute and storage systems across 19 mutually exclusive workloads, defined as applications and their datasets. The full taxonomy including definitions of the workloads can be found in IDC’s Worldwide Semi-annual Enterprise Infrastructure Tracker: Workloads Taxonomy, 2021. The majority of workloads map to secondary or functional software markets while several, including Content Delivery and Digital Services, have no equivalent in the software market structure. Workloads are further consolidated into seven workload categories, which include: Application Development & Testing, Business Applications, Data Management, Digital Services, Email/Collaborative & Content Applications, Infrastructure, and Technical Applications.

In 2022, the Data Management workload category, which includes five workloads – AI Lifecycle, Business Intelligence and Analytics, Structured Database/Data Management, Text and Media Analytics, and Unstructured Database – was the largest workload category with $US41.4 billion in spending on compute and storage infrastructure products. It will remain the largest throughout the forecast period with a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.3 per cent and reaching $US61.7 billion in infrastructure spending in 2027. Most of the growth in this category will come from the fastest growing workloads related to unstructured data and artificial intelligence, all of which will grow at a double-digit CAGR.

Data Management will also be the largest category of infrastructure spending in both shared and dedicated cloud environments at 14.1 per cent CAGR and $US26.6 billion spending in 2027 in shared, 4.9 per cent CAGR and $US35.2 billion in 2027 in dedicated environments (this includes dedicated cloud and non-cloud infrastructure deployments). Technical Applications will be the fastest growing workload category for compute and storage infrastructure consumption in both shared environments at 15.7 per cent CAGR, and in dedicated environments at 5.8 per cent CAGR. Cumulative spending on infrastructure for the technical workload category will reach $US12.0 billion in 2027.

As enterprise workloads continue to move into public cloud, investments in shared infrastructure (a hardware base for delivering public cloud services) will be increasing faster than investments in dedicated infrastructure across all workloads. Similarly, the growth in investments compute and storage systems for cloud-native workloads will be twice as high as the growth in spend on infrastructure supporting traditional workloads (11.6 per cent vs 5 per cent CAGR) although traditional workloads will continue accounting for majority of spend during the forecast period (71.4 per cent in 2027).

Tags: data managementIDCStructured database

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Success in aligning the I&O strategy with critical business outcomes is needed

Seventy-five percent of organizations will have implemented a data centre infrastructure sustainability program driven by cost optimization and stakeholder pressures by 2027, up from less than 5 per cent in 2022, according to Gartner, Inc.

“Responsibilities for sustainability are increasingly being passed down from CIOs to infrastructure and operations (I&O) leaders to improve IT’s environmental performance, particularly around data centres,” said Autumn Stanish, Senior Principal Analyst at Gartner. “This has led many down the path of greater spend and investment in environmental solutions, but environmental impact shouldn’t be the only focus. Sustainability can also have a significant positive impact on non-environmental factors, such as brand, innovation, resilience and attracting talent.”

According to a Gartner survey of 221 respondents from North America, Europe and APAC conducted in the second half of 2022, environmental performance of IT infrastructure is only one facet of a strong I&O sustainability strategy, with most sustainability benefits being indirect.

“Success in aligning the I&O strategy with critical business outcomes requires a more comprehensive approach that recognizes the indirect benefits that come with sustainable IT operations,” said Stanish. “This is true specifically for organizations in which IT is material to the business, such as financial services.”

According to the Gartner survey, the top three indirect benefits include:

Reduced Costs
The most effective action I&O leaders can take for the environment and their budget is to defer purchasing new equipment and better manage, optimize, or redeploy what they already have. According to Gartner, organizations can experience up to 60 per cent in cost savings by simply extending product life spans from three to five years. In addition, optimizing for better server utilization and storage capacity is another way to reduce waste and save money.

Innovation
Organizations are using sustainable strategies to drive innovation and growth through new products and business models. Technology hardware vendors are rapidly releasing new products and services based on AI technology, analytics insights and circular business models that can be leveraged for innovation. For example, open telemetry platforms may be deployed to track and improve energy efficiency, while simultaneously offering critical insights for IT staff to understand usage patterns that can be optimized for greater, more consistent performance of systems.

“The core focus of many enterprises with a sustainability strategy is actually around how they can use it to drive innovation, differentiation and growth through new products and business models,” Stanish said. “However, fewer than half of I&O leaders we speak to are currently taking advantage of the business benefits beyond reduced energy costs.”

Better Risk Management and Mitigation
In a market disrupted by price fluctuations and supply constraints, organizations can achieve greater resilience and better risk management and mitigation by adopting sustainable recycling and resource utilization practices. This includes organizations using renewable energy, generating their own power, and reusing and redeploying equipment as much as possible.

According to the Gartner survey, more than 85 per cent of business leaders agree that sustainability is an investment that protects the organization from disruption.

Tags: data centresGartner

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The new data centre location is Console Connect’s fourth Point of Presence in Sydney

We are excited to announce that the Console Connect Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) platform is now available at the Macquarie Data Centres campus in Macquarie Park, Sydney.

The new data centre location is Console Connect’s fourth Point of Presence (PoP) in Sydney, a strategic choice given the growing relevance of Macquarie Park as hub of technological innovation in Sydney.

The new PoP gives Macquarie Data Centres customers a fast and seamless way to extend their digital ecosystem by privately connecting to the world’s largest clouds, SaaS platforms and a network of over 900 data centres globally. This includes dedicated and on-demand connections to hyperscalers such as AWS, Google Cloud, Cloudflare, Salesforce, Microsoft Azure, IBM Cloud and more.

Macquarie Data Centres is one of Australia’s most trusted and secure data centre providers with customers ranging from major international hyperscalers, to Australian Federal Government agencies and Global Fortune 500 companies.

Through a single Access Port at the Macquarie Park Data Centre campus, businesses can access Console Connect’s full range of on-demand connectivity services, including:

• On-demand metro, regional and international Layer 2 connections delivered across our own high-performance network, reaching 900+ data centres worldwide, including 200+ locations in Asia Pacific.
• Premium business internet access delivered on-demand via our leading IP Tier 1 network (AS3941).
• A leading multi-cloud connectivity solution called CloudRouter, which dynamically routes traffic to and between different cloud platforms.
• A remote peering service that provides access to leading Internet Exchanges, and bundles peering and end-to-end connectivity together through a single platform.

Macquarie Data Centres operates a network of sovereign data centres strategically located in Australia’s innovation hubs across Sydney and Canberra.

Its Macquarie Park Data Centre campus is a state-of-the-art vendor-neutral facility including:

• Australia’s highest level of industry certifications and compliance program to federal Government standards.
• Globally award-recognised facilities team providing 24x7x365, engineering and critical support by over 200 government-cleared personnel.
• Hyperscale ready, fully flexible and customisable design which is built to be able to scale fast.

Tags: AustraliaMacquarieNaaS

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There are signs that the demand of some markets has softened, such as China.

It is no secret that the mobile devices market has had a torrid past three years as shipments have been buffeted in all directions. The global pandemic, geopolitical pressures, supply chain issues, and macroeconomic headwinds have conspired to hinder the sector’s collaboration, market development, and innovation. This extremely challenging environment has dramatically affected both demand and supply chains. It has led to subsequent inflationary pressures, leading to a worsening global cost of living crisis suppressing growth and confidence in the consumer sector. In tandem, mobile device industry stakeholders have become more cautious triggering market uncertainties.

Operating under such a backdrop, the development of mobile device ecosystems and vendor landscapes have been impacted severely. Many of these market pressures persisted throughout 2022 and now into 2023, borne chiefly by the smartphone market. According to global technology intelligence firm ABI Research, worldwide smartphone shipments in 2022 declined 9.6 per cent Year-over-Year (YoY) to reach 1.207 billion units but anticipates that the market will see a marginal 2.4 per cent increase in 2023 to 1.24 billion. “Despite the economic climate and geopolitical volatility conspiring to outweigh any growth potential in 2022, smartphone demand is expected to be counterbalanced in 2023 by 5G device affordability as a primary growth driver,” commented David McQueen, Research Director at ABI Research. “Smartphone sales are also expected to be buoyed throughout the year by large fledgling markets continuing their migration to 5G, notably India, and as smartphones replace feature phones.”

While there are signs that softened demand in some markets, such as China, will rebound through 2023, the premium and high-end smartphone market is expected to remain resilient as it is relatively unaffected by economic fluctuations. “It will be the mobile device industry’s ability to strike a positive balance between the impact of disrupters against the gradual return of supply chains, consumer sentiment, market confidence, and strength of demand that will determine the speed of recovery and instigate a longer-term sustainable path,” added McQueen.

With these market vectors in mind, ABI Research expects smartphone shipments to grow to 1.33 billion by 2028 at a CAGR of 1.5 per cent. As a vital part of this overall growth, 5G smartphones will increase from 825 million in 2023 to 1.244 billion by 2028, accounting for 67 per cent and 93 per cent of the total, respectively, indicating that global 5G penetration still has some way to go. Conversely, spikes in demand for items like tablets, notebooks, and Chromebooks caused during the pandemic and by changes in consumer behaviour have been tempered after demand contracted in 2022, and shipments are expected to fall over the coming years.

While market confidence is under such pressure, it is proving difficult to predict the speed at which future demand will recover in the short- and mid-term across regions, as well as for the many mobile device product types. Moreover, there is still much to be done to fully expose the value of the 5G ecosystem and realize its full potential, which the introduction of 5G-Advanced by 2024 will bolster. “Despite the industry’s current woes still looming large, the mobile devices market could potentially be buoyed over the next 18 months by additional technology migration and consumers’ eagerness to embrace new innovative mobile experiences and services, enhanced broadband speeds, leading-edge form factors, including foldable devices, and greater processing power. In combination, these can drive the industry from device-led to a more experience-centric ecosystem,” concludes McQueen.

Tags: ABI ResearchPrnasia

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Demand for high-speed broadband services continues to surge in the post-pandemic era

Hong Kong Broadband Network Limited (“HKBN”) has launched the world’s first Money-Back Fibre Broadband Dual Guarantee, along with an upgraded 2000M fibre broadband service, pledging to offer smooth and speedy broadband experiences with industry-leading service quality and network performance.

Demand for high-speed broadband services continues to surge in the post-pandemic era. Working, learning, or gaming at home requires the support of a fast and stable network. As a leading integrated telecom and ICT solutions provider, HKBN is again bringing disruption to the market by offering its Fibre Broadband Dual Guarantee with “Speed Guarantee”* and “Low Latency Guarantee” designated for gamers, ensuring smooth network speed and low-latency gaming experience with designated popular game servers. Customers will be entitled for twice the daily fee for each day which the service is out of guaranteed range after application and approval. Both new and existing customers who subscribe to designated home broadband service plans can enjoy the guarantee!

In parallel, HKBN has also launched an upgraded 2000M broadband service for users who demand the ultimate in performance and speed. The upgraded 2000M service offers customers the flexibility to choose their preferred routers, including the latest Wi-Fi 6/6E router series with 2.5Gbps WAN ports, customers can experience ultra-fast Internet that surpasses the previous download speed limit of 1000M, doubling the download speed to satisfy the surging network needs of households with multiple devices, and fully experience unimpeded performance on the latest mobile phones, tablets, and computers.

Rex Hui, HKBN Co-Owner and Director — Product Development & Management, Residential Solutions said, “Daring to challenge and innovate has been the DNA of HKBN’s business. With our disruptive first^ Fibre Broadband Dual Guarantee and upgraded 2000M broadband service launch, we’re literally bringing customers world-leading network experiences that address both speed and usage needs. In the future, we’ll never stop challenging ourselves to improve service quality, so as to deliver unparalleled network services to our customers.”

HKBN is the first telecommunications provider in the world to offer compensation in Hong Kong dollars for the “Fibre Broadband Dual Guarantee”, and the only telecommunications provider in Hong Kong to offer guaranteed speeds for designated 100M to 2000M fibre broadband services. (As of 24th April 2023)

“Speed Guarantee” is only applicable to designated 100M/200M/500M/800M/1000M/2000M home broadband service plans and non-fibre-to-the-home technology 100M home broadband service plans. “Speed Guarantee” refers to the “Hong Kong Broadband Network Speed Test” result, which, except designated circumstances, shall not be lower than the relevant “Guarantee Range” of the respective broadband speed service plan selected by Subscriber.

Tags: HKBNHong KongPrnasia

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Rising inflation and currency devaluations made technology investments costlier

According to the latest data released by IDC’s Worldwide Black Book: Live Edition, IT spending by Indian enterprises and service providers is projected to grow 7.8 per cent in 2023, albeit more slowly than in 2022. Consumer IT spending (dominated by consumer purchases of devices such as mobiles, tablets, PCs, wearables, and peripherals) saw a drastic decline in Q4 2022 and turned cautious due to rising prices, pulling the growth to 2.1 per cent in 2023. Overall, Indian IT spending (which includes spending by enterprises, service providers, and consumers) is projected to grow by 4.7 per cent in 2023 to USD 86.7 billion in constant currency, lower than the 5.8 per cent growth IDC reported for 2023 in its October press release. Enterprises’ immediate concerns impacting IT budgets are inflation-driven price increases, staffing shortages, IT supply chain constraints – especially on the networking side, and the impact of the weakening global economy on expected business revenues.

Reserve Bank of India forecasted moderated GDP growth in 2023 due to the expected global economic slowdown and persistently elevated oil prices, with recovery expected in 2024. However, India’s GDP remains higher than some peer economies, owing to the importance of a large domestic consumer base and less reliance on global demand.

“Rising inflation and currency devaluations made technology investments costlier. Enterprises focused on immediate needs by either stretching or prioritizing budgets. But with worries around weakening global macroeconomic situation, spending growth has moderated,” says Vinay Gupta, Research Director, IT Spending Guides, IDC Asia/Pacific. “Enterprises still face challenges impacting their business and will look at consumption-based models to drive their focus on transformation,” he added.

With investments by enterprises and service providers, infrastructure spending (dominated by server, storage, and networking equipment) had a banner year in 2022. However, with a moderating economic outlook, spending growth will slow in 2023. Enterprises aim to drive efficiencies, optimize cost using automation tools and prioritize as-a-service consumption model for infrastructure purchases avoiding significant CAPEX investments.

Domestic IT Services spending is projected to grow 8.7 per cent in 2023, driven by enterprises’ need to increase customer engagement and satisfaction, launch new products/services, and improve operational efficiency to drive revenue growth and profitability. Enterprises’ increasing adoption of cloud and co-location services drives the managed services market. The managed services market hence resists immediate impact from adverse economic scenarios. Project-oriented services are guided by the need for system integration and IT consulting services but are susceptible to declines in business confidence.

Software spending is projected to grow 15 per cent in 2023, driven by higher adoption of cloud-based solutions. Automation-related platforms and tools, security, workplace solutions (collaboration, content management, virtual meeting, unified communications), data and analytics initiatives/projects, infrastructure, and IT operation optimization initiatives are still focused areas for enterprises despite the moderating economic growth.

Due to high inflation, dwindling retail consumer demand impacted sales of mobiles, PC, notebooks, hardcopy peripherals, and tablets affecting consumer IT spending. Mobile phones constitute the lion’s share by value of consumer technology spending in India. Mobile phone shipments declined in 4Q2022, and 2022 had the lowest shipments since 2019. Expectations are that concerns around rising prices and higher inventory in the channel will persist until the first half of 2023, with an elongated recovery after that. The sale of traditional PCs (including desktops, notebooks, and workstations) grew marginally by shipment in 2022, with similar challenges and expected recovery in 2023 as that of mobile phones.

Tags: IndiaIT

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Data security taking a back seat with APAC consumers

F5’s latest report Curve of Convenience 2023 Report: The Pursuit of APIs has revealed that 79 percent of Asia Pacific consumers are willing to grant companies access to their data in exchange for better utility and customer experience, with 96 per cent percent willing to save sensitive data onto websites and applications for a more streamlined process.

In recent years, it has become standard practice for users to log in to websites and services using third-party authentication, such as through a user’s existing Google or Facebook accounts. These trends reflect a collective desire for convenience, speed, and personalization at every stage of a consumer’s digital experience. These features are often enabled by an Application Programming Interface or API, which helps to improve efficiency and are applicable to almost all businesses if it touches on money transfers and digital payments. Like any web application however, these APIs can be exploited and abused unless properly protected, resulting in security breaches and fraud, putting entire digital ecosystems at risk.

“Striking the right balance between usability and security is often a challenge, but it can be done – with the help of a suitable checklist and security solutions that enable continual discovery and protection of APIs, organizations will be able to implement a positive API security model that enhances risk management and fosters digital innovation,” said Adam Judd, Senior Vice President, Asia Pacific, China, and Japan, at F5.

“Although APAC consumers are willing to share their data, it is important for organizations that deliver digital services to be reminded that they must also be proactive in seeking out trustworthy security providers to secure their data,” said Jessie Tung, Growth Strategist & Co-founder, twimbit. “Thus, it is important for them to deliver holistic data security measures to gain the trust of both the service provider and end user.”

With a growing reliance on digital services and consistent headlines about data breaches, APAC consumers are also increasingly concerned about data security. The Curve of Convenience 2023 report also revealed that over 75 percent of APAC consumers are ready to withdraw support from a company in the event of a data breach despite offerings like supreme services and products, with 53 percent interested in knowing the sensitive data compromised during a data leak. These findings signify the importance of data security in the minds of Asia – Pacific consumers and businesses, many of which do not prioritize it at risk of losing their competitive edge.

Tags: APIF5

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Cloud is currently driving digital business transformation

Worldwide end-user spending on public cloud services is forecast to grow 21.7 per cent to total $US597.3 billion in 2023, up from $US491 billion in 2022, according to the latest forecast from Gartner, Inc. Cloud computing is driving the next phase of digital business, as organizations pursue disruption through emerging technologies like generative artificial intelligence (AI), Web3 and the metaverse.

“Hyperscale cloud providers are driving the cloud agenda,” said Sid Nag, Vice President Analyst at Gartner. “Organizations today view cloud as a highly strategic platform for digital transformation, which is requiring cloud providers to offer more sophisticated capabilities as the competition for digital services heats up.”

“For example, generative AI is supported by large language models (LLMs), which require powerful and highly scalable computing capabilities to process data in real-time,” added Nag. “Cloud offers the perfect solution and platform. It is no coincidence that the key players in the generative AI race are cloud hyperscalers.”

All segments of the cloud market are expected see growth in 2023. Infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) is forecast to experience the highest end-user spending growth in 2023 at 30.9 per cent, followed by platform-as-a-service (PaaS) at 24.1 per cent.

Gartner predicts that by 2026, 75 per cent of organizations will adopt a digital transformation model predicated on cloud as the fundamental underlying platform.

“The next phase of IaaS growth will be driven by customer experience, digital and business outcomes and the virtual-first world,” said Nag. “Emerging technologies that help businesses interact more closely and in real time with their customers, such as chatbots and digital twins, are reliant upon cloud infrastructure and platform services to meet growing demands for compute and storage power.”

While cloud infrastructure and platform services are driving the highest spending growth, SaaS remains the largest segment of the cloud market by end-user spending. SaaS spending is projected to grow 17.9 per cent to total $US197 billion in 2023.

“The technology substrate of cloud computing is firmly dominated by the hyperscalers, but leadership of the business application layer is more fragmented,” said Nag. “Providers are facing demands to redesign SaaS offerings for increased productivity, leveraging cloud-native capabilities, embedded AI and composability – particularly as budgets are increasingly driven and owned by business technologists. This change will ignite a wave of innovation and replacement in the cloud platform and application markets.”

Tags: CloudGartner

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Security leaders must pivot to a human-centric focus

Security and risk management (SRM) leaders must rethink their balance of investments across technology and human-centric elements when creating and implementing cybersecurity programs in line with nine top industry trends, according to Gartner, Inc.

“A human-centered approach to cybersecurity is essential to reduce security failures,” said Richard Addiscott, Sr Director Analyst at Gartner. “Focusing on people in control design and implementation, as well as through business communications and cybersecurity talent management, will help to improve business-risk decisions and cybersecurity staff retention.”

To address cybersecurity risks and sustain an effective cybersecurity program, SRM leaders must be focused on three key domains: (i) the essential role of people for security program success and sustainability; (ii) technical security capabilities that provide greater visibility and responsiveness across the organization’s digital ecosystem; and (iii) restructuring the way the security function operates to enable agility without compromising security.

The following nine trends will have a broad impact for SRM leaders across these three areas:

Trend 1: Human-Centric Security Design
Human-centric security design prioritizes the role of employee experience across the controls management life cycle. By 2027, 50 per cent of large enterprise chief information security officers (CISOs) will have adopted human-centric security design practices to minimize cybersecurity-induced friction and maximize control adoption.

“Traditional security awareness programs have failed to reduce unsecure employee behavior,” said Addiscott. “CISOs must review past cybersecurity incidents to identify major sources of cybersecurity induced-friction and determine where they can ease the burden for employees through more human-centric controls or retire controls that add friction without meaningfully reducing risk.”

Trend 2: Enhancing People Management for Security Program Sustainability
Traditionally, cybersecurity leaders have focused on improving technology and processes that support their programs, with little focus on the people that create these changes. CISOs who take a human-centric talent management approach to attract and retain talent have seen improvements in their functional and technical maturity. By 2026, Gartner predicts that 60 per cent of organizations will shift from external hiring to “quiet hiring” from internal talent markets to address systemic cybersecurity and recruitment challenges.

Trend 3: Transforming the Cybersecurity Operating Model to Support Value Creation
Technology is moving from central IT functions to lines of business, corporate functions, fusion teams, and individual employees. A Gartner survey found that 41 per cent of employees perform some kind of technology work, a trend that is expected to continue growing over the next five years.

“Business leaders now widely accept that cybersecurity risk is a top business risk to manage – not a technology problem to solve,” said Addiscott. “Supporting and accelerating business outcomes is a core cybersecurity priority yet remains a top challenge.”

CISOs must modify their cybersecurity’s operating model to integrate how work gets done. Employees must know how to balance several risks including cybersecurity, financial, reputational, competitive, and legal risks. Cybersecurity must also connect to business value by measuring and reporting success against business outcomes and priorities.

Trend 4: Threat Exposure Management
The attack surface of modern enterprises is complex and creates fatigue. CISOs must evolve their assessment practices to understand their exposure to threats by implementing continuous threat exposure management (CTEM) programs. Gartner predicts that by 2026, organizations prioritizing their security investments based on a CTEM program will suffer two-thirds fewer breaches.

“CISOs must continually refine their threat assessment practices keeping up with their organization’s evolving work practices, using a CTEM approach to evaluate more than just technology vulnerabilities,” said Addiscott.

Trend 5: Identity Fabric Immunity
Fragile identity infrastructure is caused by incomplete, misconfigured, or vulnerable elements in the identity fabric. By 2027, identity fabric immunity principles will prevent 85 per cent of new attacks and thereby reduce the financial impact of breaches by 80 per cent.

“Identity fabric immunity not only protects the existing and new IAM components in the fabric with identity threat and detection response (ITDR), but it also fortifies it by completing and properly configuring it,” said Addiscott.

Trend 6: Cybersecurity Validation
Cybersecurity validation brings together the techniques, processes and tools used to validate how potential attackers exploit an identified threat exposure. The tools required for cybersecurity validation are making significant progress to automate repeatable and predictable aspects of assessments, enabling regular benchmarks of attack techniques, security controls and processes. Through 2026, more than 40 per cent of organizations, including two-thirds of midsize enterprises, will rely on consolidated platforms to run cybersecurity validation assessments.

Trend 7: Cybersecurity Platform Consolidation
As organizations look to simplify operations, vendors are consolidating platforms around one or more major cybersecurity domains. For example, identity security services may be offered through a common platform that combines governance, privileged access, and access management features. SRM leaders need to continuously inventory security controls to understand where overlaps exist and reduce the redundancy through consolidated platforms.

Trend 8: Composable Businesses Need Composable Security
Organizations must transition from relying on monolithic systems to building modular capabilities in their applications to respond to the accelerating pace of business change. Composable security is an approach where cybersecurity controls are integrated into architectural patterns and then applied at a modular level in composable technology implementations. By 2027, more than 50 per cent of core business applications will be built using composable architecture, requiring a new approach to securing those applications.

“Composable security is designed to protect composable business,” said Addiscott. “The creation of applications with composable components introduces undiscovered dependencies. For CISOs, this is a significant opportunity to embed privacy and security by design by creating component-based, reusable security control objects.”

Trend 9: Boards Expand Their Competency in Cybersecurity Oversight
The board’s increased focus on cybersecurity is being driven by the trend toward explicit-level accountability for cybersecurity to include enhanced responsibilities for board members in their governance activities. Cybersecurity leaders must provide boards with reporting that demonstrates the impact of cybersecurity programs on the organization’s goals and objectives.

“SRMs leaders must encourage active board participation and engagement in cybersecurity decision making,” said Addiscott. “Act as a strategic advisor, providing recommendations for actions to be taken by the board, including allocation of budgets and resources for security.”

Tags: GartnerSRM leaders

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Breach referred to relevant state, federal authorities and ACSC

The Tasmanian Government continues to investigate a compromise of a third-party file transfer service, which may have resulted in the loss of data held by the Government.

Minister for Science and Technology, Madeleine Ogilvie, said the security of government information and the safety of Tasmanians-remains of paramount importance.

“We have referred the potential breach to relevant State and Federal authorities, including police and the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC),” Minister Ogilvie said.

The Tasmanian Government is one of many organisations using the third-party file transfer service GoAnywhere MFT, which disclosed a software vulnerability that had possibly been exploited globally.

“We are taking swift action to investigate this breach and ascertain if any information has been compromised. We will continue to provide updated information as it becomes available,” the Minister said.

“Our government reiterates that if the investigation reveals any personal information has been compromised, we will work with anyone affected and ensure support is available.”

“The nature of the information in possession of the third-party contractor at the time of the compromise is part of the current investigations,” she said.

“We are taking swift action to investigate this breach and ascertain if any information has been compromised. We will continue to provide updated information as it becomes available.”

Minister Ogilvie, who recently attended a Cyber Security Networking Breakfast hosted by TasICT and Telstra, said “the security of government information and the safety of Tasmanians will always be of paramount importance.”

In an update on the investigations, the Government has now identified the types of information that may have been accessed.

“The latest investigations indicate a risk that financial data from the Department for Education, Children and Young People may have been accessed in the global incident,” Minister Ogilvie said

“This may include names, addresses, invoices, and bank account numbers.

“I stress there is no confirmation such information has been stolen and reiterate that no Tasmanian Government IT systems have been hacked.

“I understand reports such as this may cause concern in the community.

“That’s why we will continue to keep the Tasmanian community updated and advise where support can be accessed.

“It is important that the community is aware of the possible theft so they can be vigilant and if needed, take practical steps including staying alert for any suspicious financial activity or attempted scams.

“The Government will continue to closely monitor and investigate the situation and we will act immediately if there are any updates.”

There are several resources and support services that Tasmanians can access in relation to data security and financial crime.

“We fully understand how concerning this development is to all Tasmanians, and we are already in the process of contacting anyone affected,” the Minister said.

“At this point in time, our advice is there are approximately 16,000 documents that have been released.

“The information released includes financial invoices and statements –including information relating to student assistance applications and may include names and addresses.

“We knew this was a very real risk, which is why arrangements were made to bolster resources over the Easter break.

“We continue to urge people to stay alert for any suspicious financial activity or attempted scams, and a dedicated webpage has been created to assist with enquiries and information.

“A dedicated hotline has also been stood up on 1800 567 567 between 9am–6pm to provide Tasmanians with advice and support, should they need it.

“We have also engaged the services of IDCare, Australia’s national identity and cyber support service and we are establishing other specialist support.”

“The Government will continue to closely monitor and investigate the situation and we will act immediately if there are any updates, and to keep the community informed at every step.”

The Tasmanian Government will continue to work with relevant State and Federal authorities, including the Australian Cyber Security Centre.

Tags: ASCSTasmaina Government

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