The document discusses the biggest cybersecurity threats to watch out for in 2020. It predicts that fintech applications, mobile banking, and e-commerce platforms will be prime targets for hackers due to the financial motivation of cyber attackers. Additionally, the document states that 43% of online attacks target small businesses due to their lower security resilience. The document also discusses how the global internet may bifurcate between the Chinese-led internet and non-Chinese led internet by 2028 due to increasing technology divides. Businesses will need to ensure they comply with varied privacy and connectivity laws governing regional technologies as the internet segments.

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Cybersecurity 2020: The
biggest threats to
watch out for

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In one of the episodes of Sherlock Holmes, Jim Moriarty orchestrated a simultaneous heist on the Tower of
London, Bank of England, and Pentonville Prison with a single tap on his phone. Sherlock, in turn, tried to find
the ‘master code’ that could open any locker anywhere in the whole wide world – a unique combination of ones
and zeroes that bears the power to penetrate into layers and layers of security. This was a fictional scenario, it did
raise a question and a very important one at that – Is our security system this fragile? Well, apparently so. The
real-life case does not differ a lot from the reel-life.
Hackers stole data of over 5 million tax-paying Bulgarians from country’s tax revenue office. For a country like
Bulgaria, this number makes up for its entire adult working population. The stolen information included names,
addresses, incomes, and social security numbers of the affected individuals.
Government databases are treasure troves for hackers. With data becoming the new currency, such hacks are
cyber versions of the good old money heists. 5 million may seem like a very small number against the 150 million
customers whose privacy was compromised in a 2017 data breach of Equifax. While the organization was later
fined with the amount of $700 million, the damage had already been done.

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As per a prediction by Gartner, “By 2020, 100% of large enterprises will be asked to report to their board of
directors on cybersecurity and technology risk at least annually, up from 40% today.” From end users to the
businesses and service providers, cybersecurity is on the top of everyone’s mind. Let us sneak a peek at what
are the threats that will majorly impact cybersecurity this year:
The prime targets of cyberattacks in 2020
As per a prediction given by Kaspersky, FinTech, mobile banking applications, and e-commerce platforms could
be the prime target for hackers in 2020. The financial motivation of the cyber threat actors plays the key role
here.
Additionally, CNBC reported that 43% of the online attacks are primarily targeted at the small businesses
because of lower security resilience and ease of hacking. This implies that all organizations, irrespective of
their size, must focus on building strong cyber walls to prevent any unexpected breaches.

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A multipolar world of technology
Reports have suggested a possible balkanization of technology and the internet. In fact, amidst the China-US
trade war, this divide will extend further to software and hardware, privacy norms and regulations. Eric
Schmidt had predicted the bifurcation of global internet by 2028, causing a break between the Chinese-led
internet and the non-Chinese led internet. The lack of censorship and regulation over the Internet’s ‘global
reach’ has always been threatening, which would be mitigated by this balkanization. However, on the other
side, a controlled reach will take away the privilege of ‘free accesses.
As we move toward a world of segmented internet, businesses should ensure that they comply to the varied
laws and regulations governing the regional technologies, privacy, and connectivity. To minimize the exposure
of vulnerable hardware or software to the segment networks, special caution would be required during their
integration.
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