How Does U.S. Cybersecurity Fare Against Other Nations?

That was the question on the table when researchers examined the vulnerabilities of 44 different nations. Let’s take a look at how the U.S.’s cybersecurity fared, which nations were the most secure, and which could face serious trouble from hackers in the future.

Why This Study Is Important

Unfortunately, cyberterrorism is a global scourge. Some nations have a better system in place to defend against attacks, and other nations could stand to learn a thing or two. Plus, it is important to be able to respond quickly and appropriately to a cyber-attack. It’s not just criminals and terrorists who are lurking online. Sometimes a nation hacks another nation. So national defense now includes preparing for online attacks.

How the U.S.’s Cybersecurity Scored

Of the 44 nations in the study, the U.S. was ranked 11th. The 2-year study found that nations, including Denmark, Finland, and Norway, had the best systems and responses in place. Who were in the danger zone for attacks? Three of the worst-defended countries were superpowers China, Russia, and India, all of which boast a nuclear arsenal. Not the nations you want hackers being able to attack easily.

Takeaways from the Study

The researchers examined stats on trojans along with worms and viruses to see which nations were best prepared to handle them. The U.S. did really well in that department. Unfortunately disk cleanup utilities, fake anti-virus programs, and other misleading software exploits seemed to be very prolific.

These hacks are usually based on the user, and not the defenses of the system. Basically, it comes down to the fact that while the U.S. has really good security software in place, user error accounts for how poorly the nation as a whole did in the study. This means education is vital in order to avoid potential hacks.

What This Means for Your Business

Your business’ cybersecurity is probably in line with the results of the study. You may have firewalls in place and keep software up to date, but have your employees been sufficiently trained to detect a scam? This may be the most important thing to consider in your data security.