SASE tech use up as cybersecurity concerns plague remote work: Barracuda

As organisations move their software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications to the public cloud to improve user experience, Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solutions have gained traction.   

Companies are deploying SASE technologies, including networking and security components, to prevent security breaches and to overcome challenges associated with work-from-home, according to a report titled The State of Network security 2021 by IT security company, Barracuda Networks. 

Indian respondents in the survey said that their organisations used nearly 52 SaaS apps on average. Hosting applications on the cloud improves user experience and reduces the incidence of the slow app, poor voice or video quality etc in a work-from-home scenario. However, this also has the organisations worried about security, said the report.  

The report surveyed 750 global IT decision-makers across industries including construction, energy, financial services, media, manufacturing, retail, technology and others. These included participants from the US, Europe and APAC representing organisations with 500 or more employees.   

Among respondents from India, nearly 87% said that their organisations had been the victim of a security breach last year, while 79% said they had faced at least one ransomware attack during the period.  

“While organisations are adapting to the hybrid approach thinking about both working from anywhere and application hosting, they continue to experience a high level of network breaches and facing ongoing connectivity and security challenges,” said Murali Urs, country manager of Barracuda Networks India in a statement issued by the company.  

Among the Indian respondents, organisations that hosted all apps in the public cloud were faster to adopt security measures. Among these companies, 71% have already deployed SD-WAN, while 75% have deployed Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA).  

The report also found that on average only 7% of employees at these Indian businesses work in the office. Among the global respondents, 94% of those who work on company-issued devices shared their home internet connection with other family members, increasing the risk of breach.