The Intersection of Cloud and Ransomware Calls for Public Sector to Remain More Diligent

Cloud and SaaS capabilities will continue to be staples for federal agencies and prevent ransomware attacks

When an individual interacts with a government agency, often, a small part of personal data is provided and stored in the system. This indicates that ransomware attacks can jeopardize both internal government data as well as citizen information. The government agencies are in a more precarious position as compared with the private companies because they are the proprietor of citizen data – from motor vehicle records to photo identification documents.

According to IDC, the overall Indian public cloud services market is expected to reach USD 10.8 billion by 2025, growing at a CAGR of 24.1% from 2020-to 25. Also, the pandemic helped cultivate cloud capabilities and by extension, SaaS, to become a necessity for government and private industries alike. Annual cloud spending has been at an all-time high over the last few years, with an unprecedented growth momentum for India at a CAGR of 45% over the last 5 years, as more and more sectors are leveraging cloud capabilities to grow their businesses

Within APAC, TMT and financial services sectors are heavily investing and rapidly innovating by leveraging cloud services. While we expect a similar momentum in India across these sectors, we also expect a significant positive shift in cloud policies among public sector organizations.

As we evolve in terms of how and where we store personal data, our adversaries adapt in terms of how they target it. And, as more personal information is being stored in the cloud, bad actors are increasingly targeting cloud capabilities.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM.gov) recently released telework guidance, the recommendation to increase telework access means continued reliance on cloud and SaaS, and the accompanying potential for cloud-targeted ransomware attacks.

It is projected that by 2025, 75% of IT organizations will be hit with at least one ransomware attack. India has been the worst hit by ransomware in the APAC region, with 76% of the organizations having suffered a ransomware attack in 2021, it’s more…