Microsoft invests in new data to prepare Microsoft Defender for the cybersecurity threats of tomorrow

What you need to know

• Microsoft and the Ponemon Institute teamed up to gather cybersecurity-focused Enterprise data, which has been compiled into the 2021 release of the State of IoT and OT Cybersecurity in the Enterprise report.
• The data serves to help illustrate the customer's perspective when it comes to the Internet of Things (IoT) and operational technology (OT) security, as well as help Microsoft improve Microsoft Defender for IoT.
• The report's findings illustrate that many customers put a premium on business interests, leaving security risks as a non-prioritized concern.

As it turns out, many businesses and cybersecurity software customers are underequipped to deal with the full scope of cyber dangers running around the web these days. Microsoft and the Ponemon Institute teamed up to gather data that would allow for a deeper look at the customer perspective, the results of which have been compiled to create the 2021 State of IoT and OT Cybersecurity in the Enterprise report. It can be downloaded at Microsoft's site, though the company also has a blog post for those who just want to skim highlights and don't want the full 36-page document.

The report's results reveal a multitude of findings with regards to how confident businesses are in their ability to defend against threats, how much of a priority they feel threats to be when adopting the latest technology, and much, much more. Here's a sampling of the findings:

• 39 percent of respondents experienced a cyber incident in the past two years where an IoT or OT device was the target of the attack.
• 35 percent of respondents say in the past two years their organizations experienced a cyber incident where an IoT device was used by an attacker to conduct a broader attack.
• 63 percent of respondents say the volume of attacks will significantly increase.

This report comes not long after CrowdStrike's and Microsoft's recent slap fight, which was sparked over the former asking whether legacy vendors such as the Redmond-based tech giant could be trusted to be competent in the security space.