DWD’s Top Four IT Predictions in 2024

As another year comes to a close, organizations of every size are looking ahead to plan strategies that will deliver growth, stability, and minimize risks. To help organizations like yours anticipate the impacts of the ever-changing IT landscape, here are our top IT trends and predictions for 2024.

1. Cyber Insurance Providers Will Ask for More from Policyholders

Cyber insurance helps protect businesses against losses that result from a cyberattack. As a result of the skyrocketing costs of data breaches and the continued expansion of cybersecurity risks as cyber threats continue to evolve, many cyber insurance providers now require organizations to demonstrate that their IT systems and security procedures are robust enough to withstand cyberattacks.

To repel attacks, as well as to enable a quick response to incidents in order to mitigate damages caused by a data breach, an effective cybersecurity system should include:

  • firewalls and other intrusion-detection systems
  • spam filters and antivirus and anti-phishing software
  • strong endpoint detection and response platforms that constantly monitor end-user devices to detect and respond to cyber threats
  • identity and access management systems to control access to systems
  • strong password policies and multifactor authentication
  • encryption of data for security and regulatory compliance
  • security incident response and event management systems
  • business continuity and disaster recovery plans

Organizations should conduct regular risk assessments to identify the shifting risks to their IT systems and develop policies to address those risks.

2. Artificial Intelligence Integration Will Continue Its Rapid Advance

Over the past year, ChatGPT has exponentially raised public awareness about artificial intelligence (AI). To gain a competitive advantage, businesses, including SMBs, in an ever-widening variety of industries are investing in AI and machine learning technologies. Industry observers, including Goldman Sachs and Forrester, expect AI to experience a breakthrough in 2024 as it shifts from the excitement phase to the deployment phase.

Integrating these technologies into their processes and strategies will help these organizations boost operational efficiency and employee productivity, optimize sales and marketing, enhance customer experience, and drive better decision-making.

3. Adopting Cybersecurity Innovations Will Remain Critical

Hackers are tireless in their efforts to find new methods and targets to penetrate IT systems. The continuous development of advanced security measures and technologies will help organizations counter these evolving cyber threats.

A wide range of cybersecurity innovations offer effective tools to help organizations keep pace with attackers. Embedded hardware authentication, such as authentication chips, provides much greater protection than PINs and passwords when verifying users’ identities. Blockchain cybersecurity uses blockchain technology to verify the authenticity of data added to an IT network. The adoption of zero-trust security strategies — based on the principle that every user, device, and system should be authenticated and verified — will likely become more widespread as organizations reassess their vulnerabilities to evolving cybersecurity risks.

AI and machine learning are also becoming indispensable in providing real-time detection of attacks and automating responses to them. Although AI cybersecurity technology and tools remain in the early stages of adoption, forecasters estimate that the global market for AI cybersecurity tools will soar from $15 billion in 2021 to $135 billion by 2030. AI tools can quickly detect unusual behavior and potential attacks by rapidly analyzing logs, transactions, and real-time communications.

4. User Education and Awareness Training Will Continue to Be Essential

Many IT breaches involve a human element. To address cyber risks, more organizations will start investing in training programs to educate users about the dangers of phishing, spam, and other social-engineering attacks. This training includes introducing users to security best practices and teaching them how to recognize social-engineering attacks to avoid falling victim to them. Ensuring the effectiveness of your organization’s security policies also requires enforcing these policies.

Finding the Right IT Tools

Keeping up with the latest IT tools that boost productivity and provide cybersecurity protection can be challenging. Each organization has its own legacy systems, use cases, and data assets. If you have questions about which IT tools and security strategies are the right fit for your organization, contact us today for a free consultation.