Kaspersky: Cybersecurity Budgets Could Grow 50% in 2022 with Insurance -

Nearly nine in 10 IT decision makers in North America expect their organization's cybersecurity budget to increase by as much as 50 percent in the next 12 months, a recent Kaspersky survey found. A similar percentage anticipate their companies will set aside funding specifically for cyber insurance.

In a survey of 600 IT staffers in North America, Kaspersky found that organizations are starting to move cybersecurity up on their priority list for 2022 spending. In addition to assessing overall cybersecurity budgets for this year, the study also covered money dedicated for cyber insurance and the vendor-client relationship.

Here are some survey results on budgeting in 2022.

Overall cybersecurity budget:

86% intend to include cybersecurity protection and prevention in its 2022 budgets.

85% are increasing cybersecurity budgets by up to 50%.

28% will continue annual investment of $25-50K per year in cyber insurance.

Risk management investment priorities in 2022:

Cyber insurance (45%), digital forensics and incident response (43%) and training (42%).

Pandemic cybersecurity budget:

19% of small- to medium-sized businesses will increase investments in cybersecurity by 6-10% in 2022.

Cybersecurity insurance:

Many companies (28%) already invest $25-50K annually on cyber insurance. As cyber criminals continue to broaden their reach and skill sets, cyber insurance will become an even greater asset in the fight against cyber crime.

Vendor-client relationship:

41% of clients still see the vendor as the expert in the field and would ask them for recommendations on how to avoid potential cyber attacks if they were hit by one.

25% would hold vendors responsible for allowing a cyber attack to happen followed by the IT team at 23%.

How cybersecurity teams can request for budget:

Present hard numbers. As of 2020, on average, a breach costs an enterprise $1.09M and a SMBs $101K, compared to $1.41M and $108K respectively in 2019.

Use persuasive pictures. A visual representation of the current state of cybersecurity at other companies in your industry, region, size and budget range can highlight the types of threats they are encountering, the solutions they’re using and the budgets they’re working with.

“As cybersecurity continues to garner more attention for the volume and complexities of attacks, it is important for vendors to have a directional understanding of how businesses plan ahead for their cybersecurity needs,” said Rob Cataldo, Kaspersky North America managing director. “Armed with this research, vendors will now be more informed when approaching potential clients and can speak more relevantly to their cybersecurity priorities in the year ahead.”

Here are some of Kaspersky’s perspectives on 2022 budgets:

Pandemic budgets:
“As the pandemic continues on (unfortunately), its impact can still be felt across businesses everywhere. While budgets may still be constrained due to the pandemic, brute force attacks have skyrocketed since the spring of 2020 making cybersecurity an important part of the budget.”

Overall budgets:
“Budget constraints shouldn’t stand in the way of a business having solid cybersecurity measures in place. Cybersecurity can happen on a budget without compromising client databases, reports and other important data.”

Cyber insurance:
“While cyber insurance is still a pretty new concept, it’s become a key area of investment for many businesses. Just like other insurance plans that we’re used to, a cyber insurance policy can help mitigate risk exposure by offsetting costs involved with damages and recovery after a cyber-related attack, breach or other incident.”

Vendor-client relationship:
“Clients are relying on vendors to constantly improve their detection and prevention strategies and solutions. As the cybersecurity landscape expands, it’s crucial for vendors to continue to innovate based on client needs.”