Data Breaches Will Increase This Year, Security And Compliance Officers Say

If you want an optimistic view of the current state of cybersecurity, then don't ask security and compliance professionals.

Ninety-five percent of security and compliance pros believe that data breaches will increase in 2010, according to a survey (PDF) published today by security vendor nCircle.

Thirty percent of the respondents said compliance is their biggest concern for the year, which isn't surprising given that many of the 250 respondents were responsible for compliance. Web application vulnerabilities and the targeted threat environment tied for second place among the respondents' chief concerns.

Eighty-two percent of the North American survey base said they believe cybersecurity in the U.S. has decreased in the past 12 months. Eighty percent said the level of security investment in the public sector during the past year is inadequate to meet the current threat. Seventy-eight percent said the level of investment in the private sector also is inadequate.

Fifty-eight percent of respondents said they think their personal data is less secure today than it was a year ago.

Seventy-four percent of those surveyed don't think that the benefits of cloud computing outweigh the security risks.

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