Enterprises in the U.K. are looking to cyber security providers to help them comply with European Union and local regulations, and protect data as employees work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report published today by Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.
The 2020 ISG Provider Lens™ Cyber Security – Solutions & Services Report for the U.K. finds enterprises in the country counting on cyber security providers to help them comply with U.K. privacy and cyber security rules passed as the country separates from the European Union. At the same time, U.K. companies must continue to comply with E.U. data privacy regulations because of the country’s economic connections to continental Europe.
U.K. enterprises are prioritizing cyber security as most business processes have gone digital, said Jan Erik Aase, director and global leader, ISG Provider Lens Research. “Cyberattacks on enterprise infrastructures are becoming more frequent and more sophisticated,” he said. “New regulations and risk management frameworks are forcing enterprises to become more proactive with their security rather than relying on preventive controls.”
In addition to new regulations, U.K. enterprises are focused on protecting data as many employees continue to work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, the report says. U.K. enterprises are exploring work-from-home security practices, including screen locking, access protection, hard drive encryption, and the ability to wipe sensitive data and applications on devices.
The report finds many identity and access management (IAM) services moving to the cloud, although many U.K. companies still use in-house software solutions. A rapid rise in external cyberattacks and internal threats is increasing the need for reliable and user-friendly IAM. Multi-factor authentication is effectively required by the E.U.’s GDPR, driving the adoption of IAM in the U.K.
The data loss prevention (DLP) market, meanwhile, is undergoing rapid change, the report says. With large potential fines from the GDPR, DPL has become an important security control in the U.K. Many DLP providers continue to offer on-premises solutions, but they are also providing separate solutions for applications and services in the cloud.
The report also sees the U.K. strategic service market being driven by companies looking to improve their cyber security programs. An evaluation of current enterprise security programs typically generates a gap analysis that can be used as the foundation for a new security strategy.
In addition, managed security services are changing from traditional monitor-and-react models to a more proactive one that includes both defensive and offensive capabilities, the report says. Increasingly, customers are engaging providers to coordinate their incident response teams.
The 2020 ISG Provider Lens™ Cyber Security – Solutions & Services Report for the U.K. evaluates the capabilities of 66 providers across five quadrants: Identity & Access Management, Data Leakage/Loss Prevention, Technical Security Services, Strategic Security Services and Managed Security Services.
The report names IBM as a leader in all five quadrants and Accenture, Atos, Capgemini, Deloitte, DXC Technology and Wipro as leaders in three. Broadcom and Verizon are named as leaders in two quadrants, and Digital Guardian, EY, Forcepoint, HCL, McAfee, Microsoft, NTT, Okta, Oracle, RSA and Trend Micro are named leaders in one.
