As part of our 2022 cybersecurity predictions series, Glasswall CPO, Paul Farrington shared his thoughts on the important issue of nation-state attacks.

“Cyber is now the weapon of choice for nation-state attacks and we can expect to see even more evidence of this in 2022. This means new cyber-focused legislation is, and will continue to be, a priority amongst governments, as reflected in Biden’s Executive Order. 

“The positive side to this is that cybersecurity will continue to be spoken about more widely and openly among private sector organisations. At a high-level, businesses will need to take notice of the changing legislative landscape and adopt a compliance-first mindset, irrespective of whether cybersecurity is currently a priority focus for them. For those selling into the government, security will continue to be a competitive advantage, but this will increasingly become a buying criteria more broadly. The value of security will continue to grow, and will no longer be just about functionality. 

“In 2022, countries that are yet to adopt or improve cyber legislation to protect government and critical infrastructure will likely do so. We’ll also see countries becoming more granular with this by legislating around software development and data protection. Governments will start by focusing on critical national infrastructure, for example utilities, before moving on to any entity playing a pivotal role in keeping the country moving and the economy growing, such as financial services. By setting out legislation on how companies handle data and interact with the outside world, common standards around security can be developed that will help keep both organisations and customer data safe.”

Up next, how will the cybersecurity trends associated with hybrid work develop in 2022?