New Research Shows Why We Should Trust CSPs With Our Data Security

New research, published this week, shows that the most effective way of protecting consumers from online security threats is to apply network-based security solutions, because CSPs are best placed to deliver security to the mass market. Furthermore, CSPs can gain significant revenue by providing their millions of subscribers with the protection they need.

Allot’s new Telco Security Trends report examined data from four mobile operators in Europe and Israel that protect over seven million subscribers in total. It reveals and confirms the following:

• Increased attack surface: Current estimates suggest that there are 2.6 billion smartphone subscriptions globally and about 6 billion consumer IoT devices that are connected worldwide. Projections expect these numbers to triple by 2020. Each new connected device increases the size of the target for cybercriminals, and the potentially damaging effects of security breaches.
• Dynamic threat landscape: Service providers, cybercriminals and consumers are operating within a constantly and rapidly changing environment. Cybercriminals aim to take advantage of new consumer trends and technological innovations. For instance, the cryptocurrency boom has given rise to the phenomenon of cryptojacking and the growth of IoT has led to attacks aimed at poorly secured IoT devices. The research shows that on average a connected device will get infected within 42.5 seconds. During the four-month research period, 1.73 Billion protections were activated, on average two (2.03) protections were activated per user per day. To maintain security under this unprecedented level of attack, operators must stay ahead of cybercriminals by implementing the most versatile and innovative solutions available.
• High stakes: It is estimated that cybercrime already generates about $USD 1.5 trillion in revenue. The conditions described above are fertile ground for cybercriminals. Some estimates suggest that cybercrime will become larger and more profitable than the global illicit drugs trade, by 2021.
• Consumers are their own worst enemy: Consumers are more aware than ever that they’re at risk of security breaches. The recent high-profile inquiry involving Facebook has meant that the issue is unignorable. However, consumers remain exposed because they neglect to patch their smartphones and don’t employ end-point security effectively, or often, at all. They want experts to protect them in as frictionless a way as possible, and to achieve this, they’re willing to pay CSPs for security value-added services.

The conclusion of the research is that CSP network-based security is the best way to meet this need and to protect networks as well as their users. Wherever they are implemented, such solutions have already proven to be successful, with rapid uptake and high adoption rates of 40%. They’re cost-effective for consumers. They’re responsive to ever-changing threats and they offer a powerful income stream for operators who can charge each subscriber an incremental fee. And they can be seamlessly implemented at the network layer, CPE, home LAN and endpoint with no complexity for the consumer.

Watch our webinar to learn how you can protect your subscribers against advanced threats, and generate new revenue streams!