A set of reports just launched by research group Market Connections examines trends in cybersecurity across the US and UK public sectors. Let’s take a look at some key findings.
The Main Obstacles to Public Sector Cybersecurity Today
The reports found that security threats from careless or untrained insiders are a greater concern for respondents than many other risk areas, and also that most organizations surveyed still reported significant barriers to digital transformation completion.
Budget constraints rank as the most pressing obstacle to maintaining or improving IT security, with 23% of UK respondents and 28% of US respondents citing this as their main blocker.
In the UK, 42% of respondents confidently reported that their company's digital transformation is “well underway in several areas,” while in the US, the number was almost the same at 41%.
A larger gap in viewpoints is visible when it comes to sources of security threats. UK respondents cite careless or untrained insiders as their top worry (56%), while in the US, the main concern relates to the “general hacking community” (59%).
Generative AI Is Becoming Part of Government IT Operations
Close to a quarter of UK participants report currently leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to automate tasks related to IT operations and observability (23%), while two in ten have adopted generative AI to enhance these areas. Among those who have not, the majority are either considering or planning to implement them soon.
In the US, more than a third report currently leveraging AI to automate tasks related to IT operations and observability, while two in ten have adopted generative AI to enhance these areas.
The Talent Gap is Slowing Digital Transformation
In the UK, 42% of respondents confidently reported that their company's digital transformation is “well underway in several areas,” while in the US, the number was almost the same at 41%. The skills gap rears its head here, with 58% of UK respondents claiming talent gaps in the workforce are proving to be a significant barrier to digital transformation. Data privacy and security concerns come in a close second at 51%, with budget constraints at 49%.
In the US, however, the top-ranking issues slowing digital transformation are data privacy and security concerns (62%), followed by budget constraints at 57%. The skill shortage appears to be less of an issue for US decision-makers, with just 47 stating it to be an area of concern in regard to digital transformation.
What You Need to Know About Government IT in Your Region
The reports were compiled based on input from 200 IT decision-makers from the Federal, State, Local, and Education sectors in the US and 100 public sector representatives in the UK. The documents cover both the US and the UK landscape, respectively, tailoring the data and questions to the nuances of each area.
The public sector continues to navigate a rapidly evolving technology landscape. As organizations increasingly transition workloads to the cloud and adopt hybrid IT environments, the challenge of ensuring data security becomes ever more complex.
