The rise of cybersecurity and its impact on data protection

Cybersecurity is attracting more attention than ever—not just in headlines, but among policymakers, industry leaders, academics, and the public. Successful cyberattacks are becoming more frequent and threatening as adversaries become more determined, more sophisticated, and more likely to be connected with a nation state. No one and nothing seems safe. The May WannaCry ransomware attack affected more than 300,000 computers in 150 countries. The presidential elections in France and the United States (U.S.) have been the subject of major attacks, followed by strategically timed disclosures. Yahoo, in the midst of its sale to Verizon, reported that information of approximately 1.5 billion user accounts had been stolen. In the United States (U.S.), the NSA and the CIA appear to be haemorrhaging top secret documents apparently stolen by insiders, while the U.S. Office of Personnel Management was unable to protect 21.5 million records on government employees and contractors holding security clearances.