Half of UK businesses hit by "cyberwarfare" attacks, study reveals
Nation-state actors step up their blitzkreig against Britain as tech leaders struggle to cope with a growing threat.
Nine out of 10 IT leaders in the UK are concerned about the growing impact of nation-state cyber threats.
That's according to research from the security company Armis, which found that half (47%) of UK respondents believe the threat is "imminent" and have already reported an act of "cyberwarfare" to the authorities.
Armis’ third annual report, Warfare Without Borders: AI’s Role in The New Age of Cyberwarfare, found that nearly 88% of tech decision-makers are now worried about the activities of threat actors backed by hostile states - a "staggering" 32% jump from the previous year. Roughly 1,800 tech decision-makers were involved in the research.
“AI is enabling nation-state actors to stealthily evolve their tactics to commit acts of cyberwarfare at any given moment,” said Nadir Izrael, CTO and Co-Founder of Armis. “At the same time, threats are emerging at overwhelming rates from smaller nations and non-state actors leveraging AI to elevate to near-peer cyber threats.
"It is imperative that cybersecurity leaders shift their programs left of boom, enabling them to stop cyberattacks capable of crippling their operations before there’s any impact to their organisation.
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) recently warned that AI will heighten the impact of cyberattacks.
However, British businesses admitted to "critical gaps" in their use of defensive AI.
Just 48% are currently deploying AI-powered security tools, while a further 48% admit they lack the necessary expertise to manage such solutions. Exactly half reported that budget and resource restrictions are limiting their ability to drive investments in the tech.
"Businesses are facing a perfect storm of nation-state attacks, AI-powered threats and crippling ransomware payments,” said Andy Norton, European Cyber Risk Officer at Armis. “Yet, 58% only respond to attacks as they happen or after damage is done. The cost of inaction is abundantly clear – to stay on top of evolving threats, businesses must shift to a proactive cybersecurity posture to eliminate vulnerabilities before they can be exploited.”
The research also showed that the financial repercussions of cyberattacks are only increasing. UK businesses now pay an average of £5.6 million in ransomware payouts, with 1 in 8 paying over £7.9 million per attack. Some industries fare worse than others, with victims in Manufacturing (£7.1 million) and Transport and Logistics (£14.2 million) paying more than double the national average.
Additional key UK findings from this year’s report include:
- The state-backed threat actors that pose the greatest cybersecurity risk in the eyes of UK respondents are China (74%), Russia (71%) and North Korea (37%).
- 68% are reconsidering suppliers and increasing cybersecurity investments as a result of geopolitical tensions.
- 49% of UK IT leaders admit their organisation has delayed, stalled or stopped digital transformation projects due to the threat of cyberwarfare.
- Over half (52%) of UK IT decision-makers say the complex regulatory ecosystem has overwhelmed their security team.
- 73% of UK IT professionals believe the capabilities of nation-state actors have the potential to instigate a full-scale cyberwar that could cripple global critical infrastructure.
- 45% doubt the UK government can defend its citizens and enterprises against an act of cyberwarfare.
Have you got a story or insights to share? Get in touch and let us know.
