Regulatory compliance is a fact of life for organizations of all sizes and in every industry. Many regulatory requirements touch the IT environment, including data privacy and protection, records retention, financial reporting, and more. Organizations that don’t meet these requirements could face fines and penalties and lose their ability to compete in the global marketplace.

Security incidents have, sadly, become all-too-common occurrences. Between November 2023 and April 2024, more than 2,700 incidents were reported affecting almost 7 trillion known records, according to IT Governance USA. Many security incidents are never reported, so these staggering statistics represent only the tip of the iceberg.

On Nov. 12, 2024, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the four other agencies in the Five Eyes global intelligence alliance warned of a surge in zero-day threats. The agencies noted that the majority of threats identified in 2023 were initially exploited as zero-day vulnerabilities.

Personally identifiable information (PII) is the holy grail when it comes to cybercrime. Hackers know that PII can be sold easily on the dark web or used to commit identity theft. Healthcare and tax-related information is particularly valuable as it enables criminals to commit fraud over a long period with a low risk of getting caught.

How strategic IT planning and budgeting drives long-term success.

Despite increased investments in advanced technologies, many organizations cling to the notion that IT is a cost center that doesn’t improve profitability. This fact is demonstrated by the focus of IT leaders.

Video conferencing continues to evolve from a conference room tool to a pervasive collaboration platform powered by advanced technologies.

The adoption of remote and hybrid work models changed the overall culture in most organizations and, in the process, pushed video conferencing technologies into the mainstream.

Cyberattacks continue to increase in frequency and sophistication, often outpacing efforts to combat them. Despite growing investments in security tools and employee training, the vast majority of organizations experience one or more security incidents every year, and the costs of those incidents are increasing.

Organizations increasingly rely on Microsoft 365, both to eliminate the need to purchase, install and maintain software and to give remote workers access to essential productivity applications and collaboration tools. More than a million organizations have adopted M365, which has about 240 million active users.

Cybersecurity was a lot simpler when all users worked within the “network perimeter,” which served as a boundary between the organization’s internal LAN and external networks such as the Internet. Firewalls, intrusion detection systems and other security controls protected internal users and devices from external attacks.

Sophisticated cyberattacks are a top concern of IT security professionals. However, many cybercriminals take a decidedly unsophisticated approach by exploiting known vulnerabilities. According to the 2024 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report, the number of attacks involving the exploitation of vulnerabilities increased 180 percent year-over-year in 2023.

The report also notes that cybercriminals are exploiting vulnerabilities faster than ever.