Cyberattacks on Australian organisations are not going away any time soon. On the contrary, they are only likely to occur more frequently, be larger in scale and harder to combat.

A recent Deloitte report has predicted that 10 million distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks will occur in 2017, with the typical attack size being in the range of 1.25 to 1.5 gigabits per second (Gbit/s) of junk data being sent.

Cybersecurity more imperative than ever

One of the main reasons cyberattacks are becoming more common is the growing proliferation of connected devices all around us, the number of which is forecast to reach 50 billion globally by 2020. So the opportunities for hacking in terms of the number and variety of targets  are growing.

Deloitte Consulting and TMT Partner Stuart Scotis said there are other compounding factors making these attacks quicker and easier to commit.

"Historically, you needed to be a skilled programmer to launch a DDoS attack. However in 2017, 'how to' instructions and source code can be found online, which can only help to increase attacks. Adding to this is rising uplink speeds – wireless and fixed – increasing the speed and impact of such attacks," said Mr Scotis.

DDoS attacks can have a major impact on organisations and the Australian Government's Cyber Security Strategy estimates they cost the country $17 billion per year. To mitigate the risk, businesses and public sector organisations that rely on online revenue, service and support capabilities should be implementing multi-layered dynamic cybersecurity strategies.

"Any defence that is predictable can be specifically targeted by attackers," said Mr Scotis.

"Preparation should include the design of deceptive approaches that establish a false reality for adversaries and can help disperse adversarial traffic."

Emerging biometric security

While the risk of cyberattacks is on the rise, security measures are improving – with biometrics emerging as a highly effective option.  

According to the Deloitte Mobile Consumer Survey, 1 in 3  Australians has a fingerprint reader on their smartphone, with two-thirds of them regularly using the security feature. 

Of those of us who are aware of the biometrics scanner on their phones, different age groups use it to a similar degree. This would indicates that lack of knowledge of the feature's existence, rather than inconvenience or perception about lack of security, is the main reason it isn't being used by more people. Fingerprint readers usage is predicted to increase markedly in 2017 as awareness of the added security and convenience it affords increases. 

Mr Scotis says that biometric security and sites in payment or authentication processes are expected to be adopted more widely – for example, to verify identification for building services, electronic wallet payments, and online Australian Government services.

Talk to ANATAS if you have concerns about cybersecurity

ANATAS has more than 20 years of experience enabling organisations to transform securely in the digital age. Whether you are operating on a business-to-business or business-to-consumer model, we will review your current infrastructure and business goals, design the solution and build the capability.

The ANATAS Advantage methodology is the result of our strong focus investment in research and development, combined with our experiences in the market. The aim of Advantage is to "create the ability to understand and determine the continual needs of integration, alignment, change and responsiveness of the business to technology and the market place."

Contact us to see how our experience can keep you competitive and safe in today's ever-changing digital world.