-
.
- Ελληνικά
The Digital Security Authority, as part of its responsibilities, has conducted two nationwide investigations to collect data and information on cybersecurity in Cyprus. The main issues assessed concerned the way cybersecurity and/or digital security issues are handled, the assessment of the importance attached to these issues, how cyber-attack incidents are dealt with, and the consequences of incidents. The first survey was addressed to businesses and the second survey was addressed to citizens. The two surveys were conducted in parallel in the months October - December 2023 on a sample of 1006 citizens and 444 businesses from a wide range in the industrial, commercial and service sectors.
The main results of the business survey, presented at the stakeholders and authorities meeting held on 19 December 2023, were as follows. [*]Of the businesses that have been attacked, for almost half (46%) there has been a financial cost amounting to an average of €27 thousand, an increase of around €4 thousand compared to last year. [*]The most common attack on businesses is phishing, i.e. fraudulent emails, at 43% (an increase of 7 percentage points compared to last year). [*]Almost 1 in 4 businesses have more than 1 year to create, update or revise their cybersecurity policies to keep up with technological developments. [*]There is ignorance among businesses about seminars offered on cybersecurity as almost half of businesses (46%) are unaware of them, while only 17% have participated in them. It is worth mentioning that those companies that participated in a seminar were made aware and took actions and actions to strengthen their security measures. [*]The average amount invested by businesses in cybersecurity tools and services per year was around EUR 11 thousand.
The main results of the survey concerning citizens were as follows. [*]Of the citizens who were attacked, for 19% there was some cost amounting to an average of €141. It is noteworthy that although the average number of attacks has increased from 20.9 to 25.9, there has been a decrease in the cost of cyber-attacks (-€177), probably due to the increased ability of citizens (+9%) to recognise fraudulent messages. [*]The most common attack received by citizens is phishing, i.e. fraudulent emails, at 36%, an increase of 6 percentage points compared to last year. [*]In the case of citizens who have not been attacked/violated in the last year, 89% do not exclude the possibility of being a victim of a malicious attack in the future. This is an increase of 7% compared to last year, which shows that people are more aware of the dangers of the internet. [*]There is a lack of awareness among citizens of seminars offered on cybersecurity issues as 74% said they were unaware of them, while only 11% had participated in them. Through the survey it became apparent that after attending seminars, the most important changes they made were using strong passwords, changing passwords frequently and avoiding suspicious websites.
Based on the above results, the Digital Security Authority intends to organise training seminars to enhance cybersecurity knowledge and skills as well as information and awareness campaigns in the near future for both citizens and businesses. These surveys are the second in a series of mapping of the cybersecurity image of businesses and citizens in the Cypriot territory. The mapping will continue on an annual basis and will be enriched based on developments and information needs as they arise.
The detailed results of the surveys are available in pdf format at the link below: https:/dsa.cy/category/press-releases/consumers-survey-2023
(GG/AF)
Contents of this article including associated images are owned by PIO
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or PIO
Source
