The Cyber Risk Handbook

Foreword The State of Cybersecurity

Ron Hale, ISACA, USA

If cybercrime were compared to other global criminal enterprises, it would rank fourth out of five high-impact crimes in terms of the cost as a percentage of the global gross domestic product (GDP). Only transnational crime (1.2 percent), narcotics (0.9 percent), and counterfeiting/piracy (0.89 percent) rank higher in terms of financial impact. Cybercrime, however, is pushing toward the top, representing 0.8 percent of the global GDP, according to a 2014 study conducted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. While many may not be aware of the worldwide cost of cybercrime, enterprises everywhere are certainly feeling the consequences of intrusions and compromise. It is hitting the bottom line in corporate financial statements.

Cybercrime is also gaining the attention of legislators, regulators, and boards as reports of intrusions and their consequences are released on a daily basis. Everyone is becoming alarmingly aware of cybercrime, as it is constantly in the news. Cybercrime is also very personal because each of us have probably had the experience of receiving notifications that our financial and other personal information may have been compromised in an attack. The incidence of cybercrime is eroding public trust as well.

The Global Cyber Crisis

We are in what can best be described as a global cyber crisis, and the future does not look promising. The June 2014 Center for Strategic and International ...