Middle East Ranks Second Globally in Average Data Breach Costs: Report
At $5.97 million, the Middle East’s average data breach cost was topped only by the United States with $8.19 million.
The Middle East ranks as the world’s second-highest cost of data breaches, at $6 million per breach, leading industry experts to make urgent calls for organisations and their channel partners to revisit their data protection strategies.
Middle East organisations face a wide range of data breach issues – including the world’s highest average number of breached records, at 38,000 per incident, and an average data breach costing $5.97 million, both figures about 50 percent higher than the global average, according to a recent report by the Ponemon Institute.
At $5.97 million, the Middle East’s average data breach cost was topped only by the United States with $8.19 million. Alarmingly, the Middle East also landed the world’s longest length in the data breach lifecycle, with a mean average of 381 days.
To tackle these issues, UAE organisations need to optimise strategies and solutions across data loss prevention, cybersecurity, and cyber recovery, which can recover key data sets, advises Condo Protego, a UAE-based IT infrastructure and information management consultancy and solutions provider. Channel partners should consult on the optimal software and hardware, and regulatory compliance.
“The Middle East having among the world’s highest average costs, records, and lifecycle for data breaches shows an urgent need for organisations to adopt a holistic data protection platform and strategy to maintain their business operations and reputation,” said Savitha Bhaskar, COO Condo Protego.
In order to best secure their IT infrastructure and critical assets, Middle East organisations should adopt Data Loss Prevention and cybersecurity solutions to identify and manage confidential data across mobile devices, storage, and networks, said Bhaskar.
“Middle East organisations have enthusiastically adopted the cloud, Internet of Things, and mobile platforms – but also expanded the data threat landscape,” added Bhaskar. “Trusted channel partners can advise organisations on data loss prevention strategies and solutions to reduce the data breach costs, lifecycle, and recovery times.”
