Over a third of C-suite executives believe a cyber security breach will affect their organisation in the next 12 months, reveals this major new study into boardroom attitudes to cyber security from CGI, conducted in conjunction with the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr).

Commissioned at the end of 2015, when cyber crime and data security risks were elbowing their way to the top of UK plc’s boardroom agenda. High profile incidents coupled with increasing government focus raised awareness of the extent and potential impact of cyber security breaches.

In the wake of high-profile cyber breaches like Talk Talk with 81 per cent confirming such incidents have heightened scrutiny.

Cyber security isn’t a new issue. However, what certainly is new is the rapidly growing business dependence on networked systems and the Internet, coupled with the rapidly evolving cyber security threat landscape and the amount that is at stake for companies in today’s digital-first world.

The average cost of a breach is estimated at £1.2m, although damage to a brand’s reputation causes C-suite executives the most concern.

This flagship research, surveyed 150 C-level and boardroom business leaders from the UK’s largest companies (1,000+ employees) across the commercial sectors of retail, banking, insurance, utilities and telco. It was conducted late 2015 and into 2016, and offers an up to date view of attitudes, risks, investment priorities and governance.

68% of boards plan to rely more on external cyber security consultants

Through the research, CGI encourages a debate about how boards can take positive steps to improve levels of governance as a means of reducing the UK’s exposure to cyber risk.

  • You can view a summary infographic of the key findings.
  • Read or download a copy of the full report in PDF format.

Contact us to talk with a CGI expert or to find out more about the report.