Aussie businesses desire simpler cyber security to fend off attacks

According to a recent report, Australian businesses seek better and simpler security as over half experienced a cyber attack in the previous year.

The findings in JumpCloud’s From Chaos to Control: Simplifying IT in the Fast Lane of Change research have found that over half (59 per cent) of Aussie businesses are more concerned about their organisation’s security than six months ago.

According to the report, more than one in two businesses experienced a cyber attack in 2024, higher than both the US (41 per cent) and the UK (45 per cent).

A key issue that was noted by businesses for these increased attacks was the lack of understanding of their cyber security systems. Most businesses, in fact, are struggling with complexity, seeking more unified solutions.

The data showed that new services/application rollouts and managing multiple types of devices and processes were among the top IT challenges for Australian businesses.

AI is proving to be a challenge for Australian organisations as it increases the complexity of cyber attacks and risks. In terms of understanding AI, close to one in five businesses believe they’re still moving too slowly, but an equal number believe they’re moving too fast.

“Australian businesses urgently need better security and are prepared to increase spending on defence,” said Rajat Bhargava, CEO and co-founder of JumpCloud.

“But they’re struggling with the sheer number and complexity of solutions available and navigating the opportunities and potential threats that AI represents.”

An overwhelming majority of these Aussie businesses (84 per cent) called for a single platform to manage identity, access, and security for their organisation. At the moment, 68 per cent reported using five to 10 tools or more to manage the employee life cycle, including device management and security, with 11 per cent using over 15 different tools.

The added number of tools has been spurred on by the increase in remote work, both in relation to the cost of solutions involved in managing remote workers (42 per cent) and the challenges of ongoing management of remote workers (38 per cent).

“According to the data, Australian businesses are less likely to use a managed service provider (MSP) to support their IT needs, mostly due to cost, though many anticipate boosting their investment,” said Bhargava.

“There’s an opportunity for MSPs to offer a more prominent role in cyber security, particularly when it comes to managing cyber security tools and SaaS.”