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ESET targets Southern Africa enterprise market as ransomware threat increases

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ESET targets Southern Africa enterprise market as ransomeware threat increases
ESET Southern Africa CEO, Carey van Vlaanderen.

Cybersecurity company, ESET, revealed on Wednesday 22 November 2017 at a product launch and media briefing in Johannesburg, South Africa, that the company plans to expand its offerings to compete in the enterprise market in Southern Africa.

ESET has a global presence of with over 130 million customers worldwide, making it the 5th largest endpoint security vendor globally. Speaking at the event ESET Southern Africa CEO, Carey van Vlaanderen pointed out the rise in cybercrime as the driving force behind ESET’s decision to now have an added focus on the enterprise market in Southern Africa after seeing a 3% annual market growth in the company.


Also speaking at the event was data security expert, Peter French from Synapsys. French helped illustrate the current cybersecurity landscape by highlighting what exactly is the “data” that is always referred to, the risks of being connected, what you are doing to risk a breach, the risks of IoT and the rise of ransomware.

French began by describing data as any information that is important to you, this could range from family pictures to critical work documents. He then posed the question “who has access to your data?” Now you would like to think it is only you but French insists that: “By having multiple devices connected online, you run the risk of having your data fall into the wrong hands.”

This main risk according to French is the human element, “We can’t be naive about our data security. You are the biggest threat to your own data. The tech in some instances may have weak spots but if you actively take steps to ensure you are protected, you will not get hit by these blanket attacks.”

When asked if there is any way to stay clear of this risk, French responded by arguing that: “If you want to interact in this digital world you will be at risk. It is only going to get worse and more permanent and we are the ones who bring this in. Although we can be responsible and reduce the risk and impact of attacks there is no way to eliminate it.”

French also pointed out the introduction of IoT and the rise of ransomware as major concerns for the future. “IoT as awesome and convenient as it sounds does pose a number of risks. It is scary what can be done and the dangers that are out there,” said French.

Speaking on the issue of ransomware French said: “Ransomware comes from cybercriminal organisations that function as fully fledged companies. These sophisticated groups have formed a business and there is a lot of money out there for them to make that is why it so important that people are educated in protecting themselves against such attacks.”

He also revealed that there was a 2500% increase in ransomware attacks in 2017, with an individual hit every 10 seconds and a business hit every 40 seconds. This is further intensified by the fact that in 2017 ransomware sales hit the $1 billion mark.

It is under this turbulent climate in which ESET has launched a consumer offering to assist users to combat cyber-related challenges within several areas, including online banking, smart devices (IoT), privacy, children online, social engineering, data breaches and ransomware as they look to continue to grow the company in Southern Africa.

By Dean Workman
Follow Dean Workman on Twitter
Follow ITNewsAfrica.com on Twitter

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