More than four in five (82%) of cybersecurity and IT professionals in Singapore say that feelings of burnout increased in the last 12 months.
They believe this has led them to be “less diligent” in their roles, and that the cybersecurity fatigue was directly responsible for a cyber breach (23%) and slower than average response time to cyber incidents (20%).
Moreover, stress and burnout were directly attributed as a cause of cybersecurity and IT professional resignations in 41% of companies in Singapore.
These were some of the findings from the fourth The Future of Cybersecurity in Asia Pacific and Japan study that Sophos commissioned to Tech Research Asia.
The report also reveals that the main causes of cybersecurity burnout and fatigue are:
- A lack of resources available to support cybersecurity activities
- The routine aspects of the role, which create a feeling of monotony
- An increased level of pressure from board and/or executive management
- Persistent alert overload from tools and systems
- Increase in threat activity and the adoption of new technologies that foster a more challenging, always-on environment.
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“This report provides timely insight into organisational cyber stress and demonstrates that things need to change. Although there's not a simple fix, an attitude adjustment would go a long way to define the right expectations around what it means to evolve into a cyber-resilient business,” says Aaron Bugal, field CTO at Sophos.
He continues: “Boards and executive committees need to drive change and demand responsibility from their deputised charges, in essence for better governance around cyber approaches. However, they need to clearly articulate their accountability in developing and maintaining a plan because cybersecurity is now a perpetually interactive sport – and there needs to be a team that provides adequate coverage around the clock.”
