In cyber threats, size of ‘attack surface’ is increasing, says UAE, Saudi IT analysts

In cyber threats, size of ‘attack surface’ is increasing, says UAE, Saudi IT analysts

Tech analysts cite excess workloads and 'evolving attacker methods' complicate the cyber defence measures.

Image Credit: Gulf News







Dubai: As cyber defences get ever more sophisticated, the threat levels posed by breaches are turning as complex, with nearly 50 per cent of security analysts in the region saying the ‘size of attack surface’ has increased in the last 3 years.



On average, SOC (security operations) teams in the two markets receive 6,736 alerts daily (around 2,252 more than the global average) and spend nearly two-and-a-half hours a day manually triaging alerts, according to findings from Vectra AI.









‘The ever-expanding attack surface combined with evolving attacker methods and increasing SOC analyst workload results in a vicious spiral of more that is preventing security teams from effectively securing their organization,” according to the company.



A majority of SOC analysts have reported their tools are ‘effective’. Yet, the ‘combination of blind spots and a high volume of false positive alerts’ prevent regional enterprises and their SOC teams from successfully containing cyber risk.





The study found:







96 per cent of surveyed SOC analysts worry about missing a