Big data has captured the headlines for a number of months now. There have been Some estimates project that data will grow to the exabyte (1,000 gigabytes) level in the next few years and shortly after beyond that timeframe hit a zettabyte (1,000,000,000,000 gigabytes) level. Take your pick – tThat is a huge amount of data.! Those figures are supported by the gGlobal data storage hardware sales figures support those estimates: Theythat jumped an astonishing 41.4 percent in the first quarter of this year.
The consulting firm Capgemini published an interesting article piece titled, “Big & Fast Data: The Rise of Insight-Driven Business,.” whichIn that article they disclosed states that 58% percent of the 1,000 C-level executives and senior decision-makers surveyed expect to face increased competition from start-ups enabled by data. They went on to report that “Today, big data is about business disruption.” There is no doubt that they are right! These stats are just a few of the reasons that justify the point that an organization’s data is an asset and that asset class is rapidly growing in value. That is why about 61 percent% of those surveyed believed that big data has become a driver of revenues.
While many articles have been written about the dramatic growth in the volume of data that is being generated, much less attention has been given to the increased threat the collection of all this data poses. Stolen date (including trade secrets) is often used for competitive advantage and often provides unique insight into the operation of the organization and its products and services. In some cases, particularly with small- and medium-size organizations, the costs associated with data theft can cause the organization to go out of business. The negative effects do not stop there.
Theft of this valuable business asset can have serious repercussion that extends well beyond the organization from which it was stolen. If this is a concerted effort, it can negatively affect a nation’s economy and become a . As I have stated before, if large enough a negative impact on a country’s economy is a national security threat. All of this is what drove the White House to publish Administration Strategy on Mitigating the Theft of U.S. Trade Secrets in 2013. While relatively new, many are beginning to question if the strategy is enough or even working given all the publicity about recent data thefts.
The sheer volume of data assets theft now poses a serious transnational security risk that must be addressed by business, industry and the U.S. government. Whether it is trade secrets, information or other data, iIt’s time for a change in the way we have tried to address this issue. We have all seen reports about China and Russia being behind the theft of the intellectual property from U.S. businesses, but the problem is much larger and includes foreign businesses. Many believe that organized crime poses just as big a threat to our data assets as China and Russia. We should not forget the reports of data theft within the professional sports environment as well.
Developing a solution to this growing problem requires the cooperation between business, industry and the U.S. government. Given that is fundamental, many do not hold much hope for a solution anytime soon. Now fast forward a few years and think about the significant increase in the value of corporate data asset. Now factor in the exabyte scale of big data and looking at the zettabyte level just over the horizon. Think about the cost of data theft and the impact to the U.S. economy given those two constructs. Even if the growth projects are only 50 percent accurate, the losses to businesses will be devastating and the impact on the nation’s economy scary to say the least. That is why big data is rapidly becoming a strategic target by criminals and rogue nation-states. Diplomatic solutions are likely to miss the mark while military retaliation will remain unlikely. That is why many that study cybersecurity trends have come to believe and accept that retaliation by the private sector will grow and is likely to become the norm.
