The technological transformation of society empowers individuals, companies and organizations, but the price to be paid is high and directly proportional: the greater the exposure and connectivity, the greater the vulnerability. That is why digitalization must respond to the challenge posed by this new scenario where, undoubtedly, the dependence of all areas of life on cyber security will be increasing.
They know this well at the Blockchain Institute & Technology (BITBcn), a training center located in Barcelona and a reference in disruptive technologies. «Companies, institutions and ourselves are digitizing at a fast pace. Contrary to popular belief, this digitization makes us more vulnerable at all levels, both financial and privacy,» explains Jordi Esturi, head of marketing (CMO) at BITBcn.
herefore, the demand for the figure of the cybersecurity expert is constantly increasing, becoming a basic element in any type of organization. Specifically, according to BITBcn, it is estimated that up to 350,000 cybersecurity-related jobs will be created in 2022. Their mission? «To identify potential threats to their systems, look for weaknesses in the security systems, test them and educate organizations about good practices to avoid making those systems even more vulnerable,» summarizes Esturi.
The cyber world requires people with different profiles and backgrounds, from developers, experts in big data, ethical hackers, forensic analysts, to specialists in behavioral economics.
These careers are usually lifelong because they evolve as technology and threats do. It is undoubtedly a good option for those professionals who like to solve complex problems.
Skills? Or ‘super powers’. At the epicenter of defense against cyber-crime «is the ability to prevent and detect cyber-attacks in real time». For this reason, within the ‘bootcamp’ or specialized training program they have developed for professionals who want to work in the field of cyber security, there is a module which, precisely, delves into the ‘current threat landscape’. Because, as they explain «a company cannot adequately defend its information unless it understands against whom it is defending».
Invisible but real threat
They are the bodyguards of the digital age. Professionals highly trained in programming and, as Esturi adds, with a very deep knowledge of the systems used in companies and organizations: «They must be very, very up to date because every day hundreds and new threats appear at a global level». «By 2021 there will be a need for 2 million professionals in the area of cyber security according to ENISA, the EU’s cyber security agency», says Jordi Ubach, program director.
In the era of cyber security, there are two types of companies: «companies that know they have been breached and those that do not know they have been breached». To illustrate this, from Blockchain Institute & Technology share that in 2018 a third of U.S. businesses were violated and almost 75% did not know how the incident occurred. «That is why it is vital that companies have a process for conducting forensic analysis to better understand how the violation occurred and to understand how it affects the company,» they assess.
For this reason, companies of all kinds have been immersed for years in a transformation process to improve their digital security, not only in terms of the organization, but also in terms of the customer. In the banking sector, for example, companies such as Banco Santander focus on empowering people, helping them to prosper in their digital lives, making them more secure and efficient.
Invisible but real threat
Currently the costs of cyber attacks for companies are around $300-500 billion per year. More figures: 76% of Spanish companies or those with security operations based in Spain have had a «cyber-incident» with significant consequences in the last 6 months, according to a survey carried out by Deloitte.
«These threats range from hacking, which can cause direct financial damage, filtering of private data and even the total cancellation of operations, with the huge losses that this can cause», explains Jordi Esturi. In the private sphere, they conclude, it can range from hacking a mobile terminal to exposing sensitive passwords that are often discovered through the negligence of the user.