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Veeam’s Data Protection Trends Report 2022 Says 67% of Businesses Are Turning to Cloud-Based Solutions to Protect Data

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The disconnect between business expectations and IT’s ability to deliver has never been more impactful, according to the Veeam – Data Protection Trends Report 2022, which found that 89% of organizations are not protecting data sufficiently. Veeam Software found that 88% of IT leaders expect data protection budgets to rise at a higher rate than broader IT spending as data becomes more critical to business success and the challenges of protecting it grow in complexity. More than two-thirds are turning to cloud-based services to protect essential data.

The Veeam Data Protection Trends Report 2022 surveyed more than 3,000 IT decision-makers and global enterprises to understand their data protection strategies for the next 12 months and beyond. The largest of its kind, this study examines how organizations are preparing for the IT challenges they face, including a huge growth in the use of cloud services and cloud-native infrastructure, as well as the expanding cyber-attack landscape and the steps they are taking to implement a Modern Data Protection strategy that ensures business continuity.

“Data growth over the past two years [since the pandemic] has more than doubled, in no small part to how we have embraced remote working and cloud-based services and so forth,” said Anand Eswaran, Chief Executive Officer at Veeam. “As data volumes have exploded, so too have the risks associated with data protection; ransomware being a prime example. This research shows that organizations recognize these challenges and are investing heavily, often due to having fallen short in delivering the protection users need. Businesses are losing ground as modernization of ‘production’ platforms is outpacing their modernization of ‘protection’ methods and strategies. Data volumes and platform diversity will continue to rise, and the cyber-threat landscape will expand. So, CXOs must invest in a strategy that plugs the gaps they already have and keeps pace with rising data protection demands.”

Regional Perspective
According to the study, 80% of UAE organizations and 82% of Saudi organizations have a protection gap between how much data they can afford to lose after an outage and how frequently data is backed up. In addition, 80% of UAE organizations and 76% of Saudi organizations have an availability gap between their expected SLAs and how quickly they can return to productivity. Moreover, 98% of UAE organizations and 97% of Saudi organizations experienced unexpected outages within the last 12 months. On average, 17% of UAE organizations’ and 18% of Saudi organizations’ data is left completely unprotected.

“The UAE and Saudi (the two biggest IT markets in the Middle East) findings of the Veeam Data Protection Trends Report 2022 largely mimics the global results, which find that the gap between business expectations and IT delivery, when it comes to data protection, continues to widen and has never been worse. As the proportion of applications that organizations consider mission-critical increases, so too does the volume and variety of cybersecurity threats. Entire industries face a data protection emergency and businesses across the world are looking for ways to accelerate their strategies to protect data, remediate cyber-attacks and recover from systems outages,” said Claude Schuck, Regional Director, the Middle East at Veeam Software.

When it comes to ransomware, 86% of UAE organizations and 84% of Saudi organizations suffered ransomware attacks, making cyber-attacks one of the single biggest causes of downtime for the second consecutive year. Per attack, organizations in UAE were unable to recover 34% of their lost data on average, while Saudi organizations were unable to recover 37% of their lost data on average. Furthermore, 81% of UAE organizations and 81% of Saudi organizations were unable to recover at least some of the data they had lost.

“To be fully transformative, Middle East enterprises need to be anchored with key technologies provided by virtualization, hybrid cloud, and Kubernetes. Companies who succeed in accelerating their adoption of a Modern Data Protection strategy will put in place solid foundations to gain a competitive advantage from digitization. It will enable them to experience the lower cost points and flexibility of the public cloud, leverage the security and proximity of the private cloud, and fast-track their development cycles by deploying Kubernetes, with the assurance that their data is protected across their entire infrastructure,” Schuck added.

Speaking about the impact of ransomware attacks on regional businesses, Schuck asserted that for Middle Eastern businesses to win the ransomware battle, they must possess the capability for education, implementation, and remediation. According to him, the best remedy for a security breach is prevention. “This can be improved through education of employees, ensuring that cyber-attackers are not being gifted access to the data and systems they need to initiate a ransomware attack. The next strategy is the implementation of offsite and offline backups to mitigate the effects of ransomware. Veeam advocates the 3-2-1-1-0 rule,” Schuck added. “There should always be at least three copies of important data, on at least two different types of media, with at least one off-site, one offline, with zero unverified backups or backups completing with errors. Finally, businesses need a plan for remediation. Do not pay the ransom. The only option is to restore data. Implementing a full Backup and Disaster Recovery plan gives organizations the ability to recover data in event of a ransomware attack, minimizing the risk of financial and reputational damage.”

When it comes to the need for modern data protection in the Middle East, 88% of UAE organizations and 86% of Saudi organizations plan to increase their data protection budgets during 2022 – spending an average of around 7% more than in 2021. “It is clear from the survey that businesses in the Middle East are investing more and taking steps to ensure that their organizations’ data protection strategy is fit for purpose given the continual increase in data criticality and constantly evolving threat landscape. To provide a strong foundation for Digital Transformation, IT leaders must implement robust Modern Data Protection strategies at the lowest possible cost. The “new normal” for modern IT is approximately 50/50 between on-premises servers and cloud-hosted servers,” added Schuck.

In addition, 52% of UAE organizations’ data infrastructure is currently located in the data center, with 48% now hosted in the cloud. 49% of Saudi organizations’ data infrastructure is currently located in the data center, with 51% now hosted in the cloud. Furthermore, 69% of UAE organizations and 76% of Saudi Arabian organizations are already running containers in production, while 29% and 22% respectively plan to do so in the next 12 months.

As such, an optimal and future-proof data protection strategy needs to accommodate physical, virtual, and multiple cloud-hosted or cloud-native options. It should give businesses confidence that their data is protected and always available across all production platforms. Through a single backup and data management platform for cloud, virtual, physical, SaaS and Kubernetes, Modern Data Protection enables organizations to modernize backup and recovery, secure data against ransomware, and improve application performance.  All of which lead to improved business efficiency and cost-effectiveness,” concluded Schuck.

The data protection gap is widening
Respondents stated that their data protection capabilities cannot keep pace with the demands of the business, with 89% reporting a gap between how much data they can afford to lose after an outage versus how frequently data is backed up. This has risen by 13% in the past 12 months, indicating that while data continues to grow in volume and importance, so do the challenges in protecting it to a satisfactory level. The key driver behind this is that the data protection challenges facing businesses are immense and increasingly diverse.

For the second year in a row, cyberattacks have been the single biggest cause of downtime, with 76% of organizations reporting at least one ransomware event in the past 12 months. Not only is the frequency of these events alarming, so is their potency. Per attack, organizations were unable to recover 36% of their lost data, proving that data protection strategies are currently failing to help businesses prevent, remediate and recover from ransomware attacks.

“As cyberattacks become increasingly sophisticated and even more difficult to prevent, backup and recovery solutions are essential foundations of any organization’s Modern Data Protection strategy,” said Danny Allan, CTO at Veeam. “For peace of mind, organizations need 100% certainty that backups are being completed within the allocated window and restorations deliver within required SLAs. The best way to ensure data is protected and recoverable in the event of a ransomware attack is to partner with a third-party specialist and invest in an automated and orchestrated solution that protects the myriad data center and cloud-based production platforms that organizations of all sizes rely on today.”

Businesses face a data protection emergency
To close the gap between data protection capabilities and this growing threat landscape, organizations will spend around 6% more annually on data protection than broader IT investments. While this will only go some way to reversing the trend of data protection needs outpacing the ability to execute, it is positive to see CXOs acknowledge the urgent need for Modern Data Protection.

As the cloud continues its trajectory to becoming the dominant data platform, 67% of organizations already use cloud services as part of their data protection strategy, while 56% now run containers in production or plan to in the next 12 months. Platform diversity will expand during 2022, with the balance between data center (52%) and cloud servers (48%) continuing to close. This is one reason 21% of organizations rated the ability to protect cloud-hosted workloads as the most important buying factor for enterprise data protection in 2022 and 39% believe IaaS/SaaS capabilities to be the definitive attribute of Modern Data Protection.

“The power of hybrid IT architectures is driving both production and protection strategies through cloud-storage and Disaster Recovery utilizing cloud-hosted infrastructure,” concluded Allan. “The benefits of investing in Modern Data Protection go beyond providing peace of mind, ensuring business continuity and maintaining customer confidence. To balance expenditure against strategic digital initiatives, IT leaders must implement robust solutions at the lowest possible cost.”

Other key findings from the Veeam Data Protection Trends Report 2022 include:

  • Businesses have an availability gap: 90% of respondents confirmed they have an availability gap between their expected SLAs and how quickly they can return to productivity. This has risen by 10% since 2021.
  • Data remains unprotected: Despite backup being a fundamental part of any data protection strategy, 18% of global organizations’ data is not backed up — therefore, completely unprotected.
  • Human error is far too common: Technical failures are the most frequent cause of downtime with an average of 53% of respondents experiencing outages across infrastructure/networking, server hardware and software. 46% of respondents experienced cases of administrator configuration error, while 49% were hindered by accidental deletion, overwriting of data or corruption caused by users.
  • Protecting remote workers: Only 25% of organizations utilize orchestrated workflows to reconnect resources during a disaster, while 45% run predefined scripts to reconnect resources running remotely in the event of downtime and 29% manually reconfigure user connectivity.
  • Economic drivers remain critical: When asked about the most important factors when purchasing an enterprise data solution, 25% of IT leaders are motivated by improving the economics of their solution.

Cyber Security

Axis Communications Sheds Light on Video Surveillance Industry Perspectives on AI

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Axis Communications has published a new report that explores the state of AI in the global video surveillance industry. Titled The State of AI in Video Surveillance, the report examines the key opportunities, challenges and future trends, as well as the responsible practices that are becoming critical for organisations in their use of AI. The report draws insights from qualitative research as well as quantitative data sources, including in-depth interviews with carefully selected experts from the Axis global partner network.

A leading insight featured in the report is the unanimous view among interviewees that interest in the technology has surged over the past few years, with more and more business customers becoming curious and increasingly knowledgeable about its potential applications.

Mats Thulin, Director AI & Analytics Solutions at Axis Communications

“AI is a technology that has the potential to touch every corner and every function of the modern enterprise. That said, any implementations or integrations that aim to drive value come with serious financial and ethical considerations. These considerations should prompt organisations to scrutinise any initiative or investment. Axis’s new report not only shows how AI is transforming the video surveillance landscape, but also how that transformation should ideally be approached,” said Mats Thulin, Director AI & Analytics Solutions at Axis Communications.

According to the Axis report, the move by businesses from on-premise security server systems to hybrid cloud architectures continues at pace, driven by the need for faster processing, improved bandwidth usage and greater scalability. At the same time, cloud-based technology is being combined with edge AI solutions, which play a crucial role by enabling faster, local analytics with minimal latency, a prerequisite for real-time responsiveness in security-related situations.

By moving AI processing closer to the source using edge devices such as cameras, businesses can reduce bandwidth consumption and better support real-time applications like security monitoring. As a result, the hybrid approach is expected to continue to shape the role of AI in security and unlock new business intelligence and operational efficiencies.

A trend that is emerging among businesses is the integration of diverse data for a more comprehensive analysis, transforming safety and security. Experts predict that by integrating additional sensory data, such as audio and contextual environmental factors caught on camera, can lead to enhanced situational awareness and greater actionable insights, offering a more comprehensive understanding of events.

Combining multiple data streams can ultimately lead to improved detection and prediction of potential threats or incidents. For example, in emergency scenarios, pairing visual data with audio analysis can enable security teams to respond more quickly and precisely. This context-aware approach can potentially elevate safety, security and operational efficiency, and reflects how system operators can leverage and process multiple data inputs to make better-informed decisions.

According to the Axis report, interviewees emphasised that responsible AI and ethical considerations are critical priorities in the development and deployment of new systems, raising concerns about decisions potentially based on biased or unreliable AI. Other risks highlighted include those related to privacy violations and how facial and behavioural recognition could have ethical and legal repercussions.

As a result, a recurring theme among interviewees was the importance of embedding responsible AI practices early in the development process. Interviewees also pointed to regulatory frameworks, such as the EU AI Act, as pivotal in shaping responsible use of technology, particularly in high-risk areas. While regulation was broadly acknowledged as necessary to build trust and accountability, several interviewees also stressed the need for balance to safeguard innovation and address privacy and data security concerns.

“The findings of this report reflect how enterprises are viewing the trend of AI holistically, working to have a firm grasp of both how to use the technology effectively and understand the macro implications of its usage. Conversations surrounding privacy and responsibility will continue but so will the pace of innovation and the adoption of technologies that advance the video surveillance industry and lead to new and exciting possibilities,” Thulin added.

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Cyber Security

Rising Cyber Insurance Pressures Push UAE Firms to Fix Identity Silos and AI Vulnerabilities

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CyberArk has announced the release of the CyberArk 2025 Identity Security Landscape Report, a global survey revealing how organizations are inadvertently creating a new identity-centric attack surface through growing use of AI and cloud. The report shows that machine identities are mostly unknown and uncontrolled within organizations, while the primary roadblocks to Agentic AI adoption in the UAE involve security concerns around external manipulation and sensitive access, signposting the emergence of a new and potent identity security challenge.

“The race to embed AI into environments has inadvertently created a new set of identity security risks centered around the access of unmanaged and unsecured machine identities – and the privileged access of AI agents will represent an entirely new threat vector,” said Craig Harwood, Area VP for Africa and the Middle East at CyberArk. “For UAE organizations to stay resilient, CISOs and security leaders must modernize their identity security strategies to contend with a new and expanding attack surface characterized by the proliferation of identities with privileged access and made worse by damaging identity silos.”

‘Rise of the machines’ contributes to unsecured privilege sprawl: Machine identities, driven primarily by cloud and AI, now vastly outnumber human identities within organizations and nearly half have sensitive or privileged access. However, many enterprises leave both human and machine access to critical systems under-secured. There are 82 machine identities for every human in organizations worldwide.

In 92% of UAE organizations, the definition of a ‘privileged user’ applies solely to human identities – but 42% of machine identities have privileged or sensitive access. Fifty two percent do not have identity security controls in place to secure cloud infrastructure and workloads. Fifty four percent of UAE organizations experienced at least two successful identity-centric breaches in the past 12 months, ranging from supply chain attacks and compromised privileged access to identity and credential theft.

AI is everywhere and identity-centric agentic AI risk looms: Sanctioned and unsanctioned adoption of AI and large language models (LLMs) is simultaneously transforming organizations while amplifying cybersecurity risks. Concerns around the emergence of AI agents in the UAE and their privileged access underscores the urgency for targeted identity security investment. AI will drive the creation of the greatest number of new identities with privileged and sensitive access in 2025.

Only eighteen percent of UAE organizations have identity security controls for AI in place. Sixty percent cannot secure shadow AI usage in their organization. AI agent adoption roadblocks include manipulation and sensitive access concerns. Complexity and identity silos are overwhelming security leaders and undermining business resilience: Fragmented identity security programs and poor environmental visibility are diminishing resilience in the face of evolving cybersecurity threats. Most organizations face increased privilege-related compliance pressure.

Seventy percent of UAE respondents say identity silos are a root cause of organizational cybersecurity risk. Sixty eight percent of security professionals in the UAE agree that their organizations prioritize business efficiencies over robust cybersecurity. Human and machine identities – many of them with privileged access – are expected to double in 2025. Ninety percent of UAE organizations are under increased pressure from insurers mandating enhanced privilege controls.

CyberArk is also participating at GISEC Global 2025, taking place from 6–8 May at the Dubai World Trade Centre. The company will be present at the HELP AG stand, where it will host a dedicated pod showcasing its latest cybersecurity solutions and discuss the Identity Security Landscape report. Attendees will have the opportunity to engage directly with CyberArk’s leadership, including Craig Harwood, Vice President for Middle East and Africa, and Laurence Elbana, Director of Sales, who will be available throughout the event.

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Market Research

SoftServe Study: 58% of Leaders Report Companies Using Inaccurate Data for Big Decisions

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SoftServe has released survey results on the state of data management in 2025, unveiling significant benefits of strong data foundations while exposing the widespread deficits in data maturity affecting most businesses. The majority of the 750 business leaders surveyed barely grasp the value of their data as 65% of all respondents believe no one at their organization understands all the data collected and how to access it. Further, 58% say key business decisions are based on inaccurate or inconsistent data – most of the time, if not always – raising concerns for companies across industries and borders.

This study, commissioned by SoftServe and conducted by Wakefield Research, assesses data readiness in enterprises by the degree of data quality, strategy, organization, investment, and governance implemented. Responses indicate a lack of knowledge in data management is coupled with an internal disconnect and noticeable divide between the C-suite, VPs, and senior management, putting entire organizations at odds when it comes to how data is used, acquired, and funded.

Key survey findings include:

  • Outdated or Misaligned Strategies: Many think it’s time to hit ‘refresh’ on their data strategy as 73% report major updates or a complete overhaul is needed, and nearly all (98%) believe an updated data strategy would be required for strategic initiatives like Gen AI.
  • Leadership Divide: While less visibility among leaders can lead to skewed perceptions of data comprehension, the division grows with 78% of VPs and 61% of directors — but just 44% of those at C-level — claim their organization’s investment priorities are negatively impacted by leaders not fully understanding how data can generate value.
  • Data on Demand: For 60%, decision-makers getting access to data when they need it is a challenge – and one that may not be an easy fix, as the majority (51%) of the 58% whose organization makes most or all decisions using inaccurate or inconsistent data now believe a significant increase in data management investment is needed to meet their goals.
  • Misallocated Investments: Nearly three-fourths (73%) believe poor prioritization has diverted needed funds and talent away from valuable data projects to broad Gen AI initiatives with weaker ROI.

All deficits aside, the survey results include a silver lining: strong data management has allowed organizations to open new revenue streams (44%) or monetize their data (38%) with the right infrastructure and governance to transform information into a vital source of income. Organizations also attributed increases in productivity and efficiency (54%), as well as improved decision-making and forecasting abilities (49%), to having strong data foundations. Most respondents hope to follow suit this year as the bulk (85%) prepare to slightly or significantly increase their data budget and nearly half (42%) of those with a fully mature data strategy expect to significantly increase their overall data investments.

“An impactful data strategy is not about perfection, but prioritization,” said Rodion Myronov, AVP of Technology at SoftServe. “It’s about gaining maturity where it matters most for your business by prioritizing the missing piece of the whole data puzzle, not tossing it aside for the next shiny new toy. Establishing a mature data strategy helps reinforce organizational foundations, so you can pursue bigger and better puzzles and projects in the future.”

Survey respondents included 750 business or technology leaders responsible for data management or AI use at global companies spanning eight countries and eight industries with $1 billion or more in annual revenue.

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