Claroty released a new research showing 53% of U.S. industrial enterprises have experienced an increase in cybersecurity threats since the beginning of the ongoing pandemic. The research was based on a survey answered by 1,100 IT and OT security professionals and explored how conditions have shifted since the month of May.

The company contracted Pollfish to conduct the survey of professionals in countries including the United States, th United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Germany, and more.

Per the report, titled, “The Critical Convergence of IT and OT Security in a Global Crisis,” 51% of U.S.-based respondents say they are more of a target for cybercrime compared to before the crisis. The report also shows 67% of those respondents have never experiences a cyber attack before.

Key Findings and Analysis Provided by Claroty and the Research:

• Adapting to disruption: Having a crisis plan that enables secure remote access plays a vital role in organizations’ ability to adapt quickly and safely to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is reflected in the commonality among the 25% of U.S. respondents whose top cybersecurity executive did not have a pre-existing response plan, the 26% whose organizations struggled with the shift to a dispersed workforce, and the 22% who said their organization did not have a pre-existing secure remote access solution (aside from VPN, which is not secure enough for OT) that allowed employees to securely work from a remote location.
• Preparing for future disruptions: However, an overwhelming majority of U.S. respondents (84%) expressed confidence that their organization is prepared, from a cybersecurity perspective, for another major disruption down the road. Additionally, 88% report that their organization has updated its cybersecurity crisis response plan to reflect a more remote workforce.
• Cybersecurity leadership: Cybersecurity executives, including CISOs, have been thrust into the spotlight since the start of the pandemic, tasked with implementing new technologies to ensure their organization’s networks and employees are fully secure. U.S. respondents recognize their hard work, as 60% believe that their CISO has shown good leadership. Furthermore, 86% of respondents say their organization’s leadership made cybersecurity a priority during the pandemic, and 83% say CISOs have provided proper training resources for working within a dispersed organization.
• Sector-specific threat landscape: According to U.S. respondents, the top five industrial sectors most vulnerable to a cyber attack are manufacturing (15.40%), building management systems (12.80%), electric utilities (12.60%), pharmaceuticals, (12.40%) and consumer goods (12.00%). The narrow differences between these rankings suggest that industrial sectors across the board are prime targets at elevated risk.

For more information, visit www.claroty.com.