Absolute Survey at RSA Conference 2020 Reveals More than Half of Respondents Very Concerned About the Security of Endpoints

Results underscore need for resilience-focused security approaches and investments as sophisticated attackers continue to exploit vulnerable devices, applications, and users

VANCOUVER, British Columbia & SAN JOSE, Calif.--()--Absolute® (ABT.TO), the leader in endpoint resilience, today announced key insights from a survey of this year’s RSA Conference attendees to gauge where security and IT leaders are focusing their security investments, strategies, and resources with the ever-increasing number of users and endpoints (including desktops, laptops, and mobile devices) accessing corporate networks. Of the nearly 100 respondents, with most holding the position of a manager/supervisor or C-level executive, more than 50 percent agreed that they were very concerned about the security of corporate endpoints given the prevalence of sophisticated attack vectors like ransomware, disruptionware, phishing and more.

According to recent industry reports, 2019 saw a record number of more than 5000 breaches as well “an unprecedented and unrelenting barrage of ransomware attacks” in the U.S. that impacted at least 966 businesses, government agencies, educational establishments and healthcare providers at a potential cost of more than $7.5 billion. It’s no surprise, then, that global cybersecurity spending continues its steep incline - estimated to reach $174 billion by 2022 - as organizations work to thwart attackers and mitigate breaches with additional layers of security controls.

When it comes to how organizations are spending these dollars to protect sensitive data and devices, more than 80 percent of Absolute’s survey respondents reported the use of endpoint security tools and multi-factor authentication. More than half of the respondents also relayed that prevention remains the core area of security focus and investment, even though a recent study shows that 60 percent of data breaches are the result of vulnerabilities that the enterprise already knew about but failed to address.

“The reality is that cybersecurity concerns and spend continue to rise, and yet so do breaches, ” said Christy Wyatt, CEO of Absolute. “To best prepare for the inevitable, companies need to look for capabilities that allow their endpoints to quickly heal and bounce back if they should become compromised or removed during an attack. The organizations that adopt a resilience-based strategy will be the ones who are able to respond, recover, and minimize the impact of a breach.”

Other key findings from the survey included:

  • Nearly three in four respondents were familiar with the concepts of ‘cyber resilience‘ and ‘endpoint resilience.’
  • A significant population – more than one in three – noted incident response, recovery, or resilience as the most important element of their organization’s strategy, while 55 percent said prevention was key.
  • More than three in four respondents reported their organizations are using endpoint security tools, multi-factor authentication, and employee training and education to protect data, devices, and users, while less than half noted the use of tools focused on tracking missing, lost, or stolen devices or ensuring vendor / partner security.

To learn more about Absolute and how the company enables more than 12,000 customers worldwide with uncompromised endpoint persistence, resilience, and intelligence, visit: www.absolute.com.

About Absolute
Absolute empowers more than 12,000 customers worldwide to protect devices, data, applications, and users against theft or attack—both on and off the corporate network. With the industry’s only tamper-proof endpoint visibility and control solution, Absolute allows IT organizations to enforce asset management, security hygiene, and data compliance for today’s remote digital workforces. Absolute’s patented Persistence® technology is embedded in the firmware of Dell, HP, Lenovo, and 22 other leading manufacturers’ devices for vendor-agnostic coverage, tamper-proof resilience, and ease of deployment. See how it works at www.absolute.com and follow us at @absolutecorp.

©2020 Absolute Software Corporation. All rights reserved. ABSOLUTE, the ABSOLUTE logo, and PERSISTENCE are registered trademarks of Absolute Software Corporation. Other names or logos mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Contacts

For more information, please contact:
Media Relations
Shannon Tierney
press@absolute.com
415-544-7226

Investor Relations
Joo-Hun Kim
IR@absolute.com
212-868-6760

Contacts

For more information, please contact:
Media Relations
Shannon Tierney
press@absolute.com
415-544-7226

Investor Relations
Joo-Hun Kim
IR@absolute.com
212-868-6760