A new study by the Identity Theft Resource Center quantifies last year’s surge in data breaches. According to the nonprofit’s 2021 Data Breach Report, the overall number of data breaches leapt 68% compared to 2020, reaching the highest total on record.
ITRC CEO Eva Velasquez told NBC Miami that consumers are often suffering from “breach fatigue.” She explained that “because [breaches] have become so ubiquitous now we don’t have that same level of concern.”
According to the study, more than 290 million people had their data exposed last year. Of the people who knew they were affected, just 48% bothered to update their passwords, and 16% did nothing. “We as a people are not considering how valuable these credentials and personal identifiable information is, but the thieves know exactly how valuable that is to perpetrate their schemes,” Velasquez told NBC Miami.
On the other end of the industry, a different kind of fatigue may be affecting cybersecurity teams. New research by cybersecurity firm ThreatConnect points to professional “burnout,” as Information Security Buzz reports.
In ThreatConnect’s survey of UK security managers, 41% said they were thinking about quitting in the next six months. Just 23% of respondents said they would probably recommend a cybersecurity career, versus 42% who said they probably wouldn’t recommend it. “Now more than ever, IT security teams are being expected to do more with less,” said Adam Vincent, CEO of ThreatConnect.
According to Micheal DeCesare, CEO and cybersecurity firm Exabeam, the industry’s employers can seize “the Great Resignation” as an opportunity to build their teams. As DeCesare writes in VentureBeat, CEOs should first and foremost rally their staff around the mission of the organization. Hybrid work, diversity and recruitment of employees with military backgrounds are other suggestions.
“Our industry can take advantage of the fact that a lot of passionate people of all ages and experiences are on the market right now, looking for more fulfilling work,” DeCesare writes.