<b><i>Online Extra:</b></i> Data Breaches on Track to Cost Companies $2.1 Trillion

As more corporate infrastructure moves online, new research suggests the rising number and impact of data breaches will cost $2.1 trillion globally by 2019, almost four times the estimated cost of breaches in 2015.

'The Future of Cybercrime and Security: Financial and Corporate Threats and Mitigation''discusses the increasing sophistication of cybercrime targeting businesses and the decline of casual 'hacktivism.' The report comes from market analysts Juniper Research.

In other findings, Juniper said:

• Nearly 60% of anticipated data breaches worldwide this year will occur in North America, but the percentage should decrease as other countries become more digital.
• The average cost of a data breach in 2020 will exceed $150 million.

And more cyberperil lies ahead. The online tech newsletter'VentureBeat reported last month'that big technology companies such as IBM Corp., Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp. are in a race to build a new generation of computers in the next decade based on quantum mechanics. Such computers could perform computations in seconds that take traditional computers hundreds of years to do.

If these quantum machines get into the hands of malicious actors, 'they will compromise every bank record, private communication and password on every computer in the world,' VentureBeat said, 'because modern cryptography is based on encoding data in large combinations of numbers, and quantum computers can guess these numbers almost instantaneously.'

Juniper's research results come at the same time another survey found that general counsel are placing a growing emphasis on cybersecurity and data protection.'In a report released last week by TerraLex Inc., cybersecurity was one of the top three concerns ' along with compliance and added value ' cited by GCs.

Cybersecurity just may be the hottest topic of the day,'according to Inside Counsel magazine'(an ALM affiliate of e-Commerce Law & Strategy), which kicked off its 15th annual superconference this week with experts speaking on the issue. The keynote panel included Patrick Manzo, chief privacy officer of Monster Worldwide Inc.; William Ridgway, deputy chief of the National Security and Cybercrimes Section for the U.S. Department of Justice; Alice Geene, chief legal officer of Rewards Network; and James Grady, deputy chief privacy officer of Aon.

'Security is expensive, security is not easy and security imposes operational limitations,' Manzo complained. However, everyone agreed digital security also is very necessary.

Something else the experts agreed on, Inside Counsel said, was Geene's statement that 'security is not just a legal issue; it's not just an IT issue.' Instead, she said, every in-house counsel should engage boards and the CEO to make sure that it's an 'organizational priority.'

Sue Reisinger'writes for'Corporate Counsel, an ALM sibling publication of'e-Commerce Law & Strategy.'

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As more corporate infrastructure moves online, new research suggests the rising number and impact of data breaches will cost $2.1 trillion globally by 2019, almost four times the estimated cost of breaches in 2015.

'The Future of Cybercrime and Security: Financial and Corporate Threats and Mitigation''discusses the increasing sophistication of cybercrime targeting businesses and the decline of casual 'hacktivism.' The report comes from market analysts Juniper Research.

In other findings, Juniper said:

• Nearly 60% of anticipated data breaches worldwide this year will occur in North America, but the percentage should decrease as other countries become more digital.
• The average cost of a data breach in 2020 will exceed $150 million.

And more cyberperil lies ahead. The online tech newsletter'VentureBeat reported last month'that big technology companies such as IBM Corp., Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp. are in a race to build a new generation of computers in the next decade based on quantum mechanics. Such computers could perform computations in seconds that take traditional computers hundreds of years to do.

If these quantum machines get into the hands of malicious actors, 'they will compromise every bank record, private communication and password on every computer in the world,' VentureBeat said, 'because modern cryptography is based on encoding data in large combinations of numbers, and quantum computers can guess these numbers almost instantaneously.'

Juniper's research results come at the same time another survey found that general counsel are placing a growing emphasis on cybersecurity and data protection.'In a report released last week by TerraLex Inc., cybersecurity was one of the top three concerns ' along with compliance and added value ' cited by GCs.

Cybersecurity just may be the hottest topic of the day,'according to Inside Counsel magazine'(an ALM affiliate of e-Commerce Law & Strategy), which kicked off its 15th annual superconference this week with experts speaking on the issue. The keynote panel included Patrick Manzo, chief privacy officer of Monster Worldwide Inc.; William Ridgway, deputy chief of the National Security and Cybercrimes Section for the U.S. Department of Justice; Alice Geene, chief legal officer of Rewards Network; and James Grady, deputy chief privacy officer of Aon.

'Security is expensive, security is not easy and security imposes operational limitations,' Manzo complained. However, everyone agreed digital security also is very necessary.

Something else the experts agreed on, Inside Counsel said, was Geene's statement that 'security is not just a legal issue; it's not just an IT issue.' Instead, she said, every in-house counsel should engage boards and the CEO to make sure that it's an 'organizational priority.'

Sue Reisinger'writes for'Corporate Counsel, an ALM sibling publication of'e-Commerce Law & Strategy.'

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