Leaders Discuss Mexico’s CyberSEC Maturity at British Embassy

Since the COVID-19 pandemic forced organizations to digitize their operations, cybersecurity maturity has become a necessity to safeguard companies’ continuity, reputation, and profitability. However, in countries like Mexico, where the majority of companies are SMEs with limited budgets for robust cybersecurity solutions, protecting themselves against the rising number and sophistication of cyberattacks becomes formidable. To tackle this national challenge, the British Embassy in Mexico convened industry leaders to discuss localized cybersecurity risks and propose solutions tailored to Mexico's cybersecurity landscape.

Industry leaders from Akamai Technologies, Control Risks, Cystel, Featurespace, Glasswall, Licel, Pervade and Iproov gathered to share case studies relevant to the current state of cybersecurity affairs in Mexico. Despite their global presence, these companies strategically prioritize capturing market share in Mexico, capitalizing on the increasing recognition of cybersecurity as a vital business imperative among domestic companies. Their shared objective is to advocate for an improvement in the country’s overall cybersecurity awareness to fortify Mexico’s current vulnerabilities.  

During the session, executives and IT specialists from each participating company identified several pressing cybersecurity challenges in Mexico. These include issues such as AI adoption, a shortage of specialized talent, cybersecurity awareness and the imperative for robust regulation. Whether through Zero Trust cybersecurity solutions, biometric data, behavioral analytics or risk assessment protocols, the services offered by these companies can significantly benefit both private organizations and public authorities operating in Mexico, the most attacked country in all of Latin America during 2022, according to Fortinet. 

“According to our findings, cyberattacks are increasing substantially both in volume and sophistication. More recently, it appears that cyberattacks are being motivated by geopolitical issues, as opposed to a common financial objective as previously observed,” said Fuensanta Gleason, Associate Director, Control Risks. Beyond this shift, industry leaders also agreed that the malicious use of artificial intelligence tools have emerged as a poignant threat to global cybersecurity. These AI-powered technologies are being exploited by cybercriminals to automate malware, carry out sophisticated phishing scams, generate convincing deepfakes, and personalize social engineering attacks. 

While some advocate for the establishment of coherent AI regulation, other industry leaders emphasize the importance of standardizing the use of artificial intelligence across various industries first. “BSI Group is advocating to establish a standardized use of AI-powered technologies. While some Mexican organizations interpret standardization as a relatively new initiative, companies around the world are already considering it,” explained Flor Villeda, Capacitation Director, BSI Group. 

The issue of a talent shortage in Mexico hindering cybersecurity maturity was also acknowledged. Despite an abundance of IT talent in the country, participating companies in Britain’s Embassy roundtable agreed that the current problem resides in ensuring the quality of said workforce. However, ongoing collaborations between the private sector and academic institutions have proven essential in developing and retaining Mexican talent. In this regard, the National Association of Universities and Superior Education (ANUIES) is making significant strides in delivering specialized IT-related training to low-income areas within Mexico, according to José Luis Ponce, Director of Information and Communication Technologies.  

Cystel’s COO, Thomas Matheus, delved into possible upcoming cybersecurity innovations enabled by quantum computing. According to Matheus, Quantum Key Distribution (QKD), a quantum cryptographic technique, leverages the principles of quantum mechanics to secure communication channels through the exchange of cryptographic keys. Theoretically, this process would make them immune to digital eavesdropping. However, quantum algorithms could also be theoretically employed to enhance evasion techniques, rendering malware more challenging to detect by existing security systems.

“Most companies lack the capacity to know if they have been quantum attacked, as quantum-driven threats do not share certain characteristics common to conventional malware attacks being employed today,” says Thomas Matheus, COO, Cystel. While IBM expects quantum computing to be widely available until 2026, companies like Cystel underscore the need for greater awareness and protection among organizations before quantum-driven threats take place across industries. Nevertheless, Matheus emphasized that the quantum computers of today remain in the early stages of development and are not yet powerful enough to break widely used cryptographic systems.

Finally, the participants emphasized the importance of effective communication between CIO’s and top executives, given that the latter tend to undermine the significance of IT investments due to a lack of technical understanding. Communicating the importance of cybersecurity helps executives understand the potential impact that cyberattacks can have on businesses’ operations, reputation, and profitability. Moreover, establishing effective communication between the IT department and top-level executives helps create a culture of cybersecurity awareness that reaches the highest levels of the organization.

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