The alarming escalation in data breach costs has raised eyebrows across the Indian cybersecurity landscape. IBM Security’s Cost of a Data Breach Report sheds light on the unprecedented figures and trends that unfolded in 2023.
A grave jump in costs to ₹17.9 Crore: 28% increase since 2020
Data breaches in India now cost an average of ₹17.9 crore. This is a staggering increase of 28% since 2020, signaling a concerning trajectory that needs immediate attention and action from both the public and private sectors.
Detection and escalation of Data Breach: A steep climb
Detection and escalation costs have surged by 45% over the past three years. This now represents the highest portion of breach-related costs, indicating a complex landscape where identifying and controlling breaches has become increasingly challenging.
Types of Data Breach Attacks: What’s Happening in India?
Here are most common types of Indian attacks.
1. Phishing: The Most Common Daat Breach Attack
Phishing attacks are leading the charts, comprising almost 22% of all cyberattacks in India. The proliferation of digital communication has rendered businesses and individuals vulnerable to these deceptive practices.
2. Stolen Credentials and Social Engineering
Following closely are stolen or compromised credentials, accounting for 16% of the attacks. The costliest root cause was social engineering at ₹19.1 crore, and malicious insider threats weren’t far behind at ₹18.8 crore.
3. A Need for a Security Revolution
The report’s findings clearly underscore the need for businesses to invest in modern security strategies. AI and automation are essential tools in keeping breach costs down, yet many Indian organizations are still reluctant to deploy these technologies.
A Global Perspective: Handling Increasing Costs
Globally, organizations are grappling with how to deal with the rising costs and frequency of data breaches.
IBM’s 2023 report has found that while 95% of organizations studied have faced more than one breach, 57% of these simply pass the incident costs onto consumers.
On the other hand, a smaller proportion, 51%, actually increase their security investments.
The Indian Story: Loss of Data
Let’s dig into how data loss has impacted India.
1. Multiple environments under threat
In India, 28% of the breaches studied led to loss of data across various types of environments, from public cloud to on-prem. This indicates that attackers are growing more sophisticated, compromising multiple environments while evading detection.
2. Highest associated data breach costs
Such breaches also had the highest costs, at ₹18.8 crore. The time taken to identify and contain these breaches was the longest at 327 days, further complicating the situation.
3. Significant impact on detection speed of data breach
AI and automation have revolutionized the speed of breach identification and containment. Indian companies that have embraced these technologies have managed to shorten the data breach lifecycle by 153 days, an impressive reduction.
4. Substantial cost saving
In financial terms, the benefits are tangible as well. Studied organizations that deployed security AI and automation extensively saved nearly ₹95 million, making this the most substantial cost-saving factor identified in the report.
Conclusion: A Wake-up Call
The data breach landscape in India as depicted in 2023 is a clarion call for immediate and decisive action. Rising costs, the complexity of attacks, and a reluctance to embrace modern security technologies like AI and automation spell potential danger.
The insights from IBM’s report must not be viewed as mere statistics but as a roadmap. They guide businesses, policymakers, and cybersecurity experts to fortify defenses. This includes implementing robust strategies, and foster a culture of vigilance & resilience against the ever-mutating threats.
The time to act is now. It’s not just about preventing financial loss but safeguarding trust, integrity, and the very fabric of the digital economy.
