Underinvestment Drives 77% Cyberattack Rate in Latin America

In Latin America, 77% of companies in Latin America have experienced cyberattacks due to insufficient investment in security measures over the past two years, according to a study by Kaspersky. 

The report reveals that 75% of Latin American companies consider the cybersecurity incidents they have faced in the last two years to be serious. Of these incidents, 26% are attributed to intentional breaches of security policies by employees, a risk level comparable to the 30% caused by hackers. Additionally, 14% of incidents were due to errors by senior IT security personnel, while another 15% were caused by mistakes made by other IT employees. 

A significant issue is the lack of skilled staff is a significant problem, with 18% of companies attributing incidents to this problem and 75% identifying it as a serious concern. Additionally, 41% of affected companies plan to increase their cybersecurity investments due to deficiencies in their infrastructure, while 18% cite insufficient budgets. Another 28% believe they currently have the necessary resources to address threats, and 3% feel they have no budget for cybersecurity.

The consequences of a cybersecurity incident for employees included dismissal in 23% of cases, reprimands and increased supervision from senior management  in 31%, penalty payments in 26%, demotions in 25%, and additional training in 36%.

Industry Overview 

Kaspersky's report highlights that critical infrastructure industries, such as oil, gas, and energy, are the most affected, accounting for 27% of attacks in the region. These industries face a shortage of cybersecurity skills, with 24% of incidents attributed to this issue and 33% caused by intentional breaches of security policies by non-IT personnel. 

The logistics and manufacturing sectors also face significant cyberthreats, recording 18% and 15% of incidents, respectively. The logistics sector experienced 49% of incidents due to unintentional human error.

Financial services are notably vulnerable to security policy violations by employees, with 22% of incidents attributed to this cause, compared to an overall rate of 8%. In addition, 34% of incidents in this sector resulted from intentional malicious behavior.

The telecommunications sector has seen an average of more than four cyberattacks in the last two years in 34% of companies, making it the sector with the highest frequency of attacks. In the information technology sector, 23% of incidents are due to human error among non-IT personnel.

Enterprise Initiatives

Kaspersky reports that 53% of companies plan to implement threat detection software and conduct training, 43% will introduce endpoint protection software, 45% will hire more IT professionals, and 32% will adopt cloud-based SaaS solutions. 

“Investments must be justified and effective, and the information security department plays a crucial role in this process,” said Claudio Martinelli, general manager for Latin America, Kaspersky.