Cybersecurity is one of the top priorities among government and industry security personnel today, according to a study released yesterday by USIS.More than 250 government and industry leaders in the safety, security and law-enforcement market were surveyed at the GovSec conference held in Washington, D.C. When asked about their most important security business imperatives, a majority (84 percent) of participants picked cybersecurity first, physical security and infrastructure protection as second, and  risk-management planning as third.
Respondents were also asked to rate the top threats to U.S. national security: Cyber attacks ranked the highest, and terrorist activity came it at second place. Insider threats and information security breaches tied for third place.
When it comes to the integration of IT and physical security, of those respondents who stated their organizations monitor security “perfectly,†nearly 77 percent are also focused on integrating IT and physical security. Among respondents who indicated their organizations respond to risk “perfectly,†80 percent said their organization is focused on the integration of IT and physical security.
Almost 33 percent of respondents who stated they were “somewhat†focused on the integration of IT and physical security identified either inconsistent or poor monitoring of the organization’s security. Fifty-three percent of those who stated they focused on security convergence identified they monitor their organization’s security “very well.â€
“This survey confirms the significant role of risk management and accountability in driving improved security,†said Mike Fraser, president of USIS security solutions division. “Not only are organizations experiencing greater efficiency and more robust security with the integration of physical and logical security, but their ability to manage risk and threats is enhanced as well.â€
