Flip the switch on Cybersecurity

For many government and public service agencies, cyberattacks seem increasingly threatening and inevitable. Incidents are rising in frequency and severity. The risk of compromising data, losing time to recovery, and damaging trusted relationships is a powerful motivator to do what matters to keep an organization safe. However, before investing in new security solutions, governments and public service agencies need to make sure they’re using all the tools they have.

The public sector is an easy target

According to the Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2023 Insight Report developed by World Economic Forum and Accenture, “91% of all respondents believe that a far-reaching, catastrophic cyber event is at least somewhat likely in the next two years,” and 43% of organizational leaders foresee a cyberattack within the next two years will “materially affect their own organization.”¹ The public sector is already under siege, as the number of attacks targeting the public sector increased 95% for the last half of 2022 compared to 2021. The biggest targets were China, India, Indonesia and the United States, which, combined, experienced about 40% of total reported incidents.²

The power of the Microsoft platform

Working with government and public service clients has demonstrated to Avanade’s teams that agencies are not making the most of what they have on hand. Simply understanding the possibilities and deploying them to protect an organization would enhance security significantly and have a genuine human impact on government employees and the citizens they serve.

Working with a trusted partner that is committed to maintaining high standards of delivery makes more sense than trying to hire, train and retain specialized skills in house. When looking for a partner, consider these criteria:

Does your partner have the capability to deliver end-to-end thinking and execution that covers IT, OT and IoT?
Do the proposed security solutions work with existing systems, especially at the connection points to your larger technology ecosystem?
What is the partner’s approach to training the in-house team?

Governments and public service organizations need to step up the focus and investment on cybersecurity to do what matters for serving and protecting the citizens who rely on them. Doing what matters means responding instead of reacting. A measured response is far more effective than a quick reaction for governments and public service agencies focused on diligently and responsibly using the resources entrusted to them by their citizens and stakeholders.

Our customers have told us that our ability to partner with them, being truly part of their team, supplementing their knowledge with our global experience has been critical in helping them to stay on top of the ever-changing security risks that they face.

Click to read the full Gov’t and Public Services Cybersecurity POV