Almost half of the chief security officers (CSOs) surveyed by Allied Universal said they plan to significantly raise security spending in the next year, after physical security incidents cost companies $1 trillion in revenue in 2022 and cyber incidents incurring losses at a similar scale.
Key Takeaways
- Almost half of security chiefs surveyed by Allied Universal said they plan to raise security spending in the next year significantly.
- Similar to cyber incidents, physical security incidents cost companies $1 trillion in revenue in 2022.
- Economic unrest, climate change, social unrest, and disruptions to energy supplies were cited as likely to impact security in the next 12 months.
Economic Unrest and Climate Change Expected to Impact Security
Some 47% of respondents said economic unrest will impact security the most in the next 12 months. That figure is up from the previous year when only 39% found economic unrest to be the greatest security threat.
Other hazards that CSOs reported could pose a potential threat to security systems included climate change (38%), social unrest (35%), disruption to energy supplies (33%), and war or political instability (32%).
Information Leaks and Fraud Present the Biggest Internal and External Threats
Broken up by internal and external sources of threats, one-third of respondents suggested leaks of sensitive information presented the biggest internal threat to company security. At the same time, fraud was cited as the biggest external threat by a quarter of CSOs.
About 35% of companies reported experiencing misuse of company resources or data, making it the most common internal incident within that period, and 23% of respondents reported that fraud, phishing, and social engineering were the most common external threats to their security.
Most CSOs Make Tech Upgrades a Top Priority
More than half of CSOs (55%) indicated introducing new technology will be a top priority in their budget for the next year, with nine out of 10 agreeing that technology improves the overall effectiveness of security operations by enabling staff to be more productive and efficient.
Of the advancing technologies emerging in the security space, 42% of CSOs surveyed said they consider artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-powered surveillance to be a key investment in the next five years, and 40% said they will invest in biometrics and facial recognition systems.
