Global Cybersecurity Market Expected to Grow in 2021

Global Cybersecurity Market Expected to Grow in 2021
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Cybersecurity spending will increase 10.0% worldwide in the best-case scenario in 2021, according to Canalys forecast. It will remain a high priority this year, as the range of threats broadens and new vulnerabilities emerge, while the frequency of attacks is unlikely to subside.

The Canalys cybersecurity market global forecast assumes current investment trends will persist. The first half of the year will be affected by ongoing lockdown restrictions and furloughs in response to the pandemic. COVID-19 vaccine approvals and the start of mass vaccination programs have set a timeframe for reopening economies and a sustained global recovery from mid-year.

The overall cybersecurity market value is expected to reach US$60.2 billion in 2021, covering shipments of endpoint security, network security, web and email security, data security, vulnerability and security analytics, and identity access management. Even in Canalys’ worst-case scenario, the outlook is for annual growth of 6.6%. This assumes a deeper and protracted economic impact from lockdowns, and considers the emergence of new variants of the virus.

Cybersecurity budgets have been resilient during the pandemic so far. SMB spending was affected though, and workforce reductions and furloughs hurt some renewals and multi-year deals, especially in the hardest-hit sectors, including hospitality, retail and transport. Supply chain issues were also a factor in hardware fulfilment earlier in 2020 but have since eased.

Despite the continued growth in nvestment, the number of data breaches and records being compromised, as well as ransomware attacks, reached an all-time high last year. Over 12 billion records, containing a range of personal identifiable information, were reportedly compromised in 2020, while the number of known ransomware attacks increased by nearly 60%.

Misconfigurations of cloud-based databases and phishing campaigns targeting the vulnerabilities of unsecured and poorly trained remote workers were key factors. Sadly at this time, with the healthcare and education sectors under extraordinary pressure, more attacks and online fraud were directed at them. Ongoing mass remote working and learning, and the acceleration of digital transformation projects will maintain this trend in 2021.