Be Cyber Secure in year 2020: New Technology Trends that will dominate year 2020

The Year 2020 is here to witness the changing trend of Technology Adoption.  As innovation explodes into every area of our lives, everything around us is changing constantly.  Cyber Security also need to trend along with these innovations. Technologies like 5G, WiFi Proliferation, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Cloud, Blockchain and many more, will continue to dominate the year 2020. We also see the prioritisation of Cyber Security among the Government, Chief Information Officers (CIOs), Common Users, Technology Providers, etc. We at CYBER SECURE INDIA evaluate the top Ten (10) Technology Trends and also contemplate the envisaged Security Measures that will dominate the year 2020:-

1. Smartphones may threaten Laptops: The ease of operating the computational power, is slowly shifting from the Laptop to the Palm Held Device. The advent of embedded universal flash storage (eUFS) in smartphones, has allowed provisioning of storage of over 1TB (Terabyte) as on date. The ability to load a more secure Operating System (OS) on a Smartphone is now an enabler to use computational power on the Palm Held Device more securely. The integration of connectivity on the Palm Held Device has also been a facilitator for users to shift to the Smartphone from the Laptop.
2. Password Hacking a Threat: The ease and commercialization of the Password Hacking Technique and also the availability of such skill set among hackers, has now threatened the usage of password. Bad habits among the users in selection and use of password is also a cause of concern, as hackers are able to generate password through Social-Engineering means. The availability of high power of computation, has also facilitated use of ‘Dictionary’ and ‘Brute-Force’ methods to crack Passwords.
3. 5G rollout and its attached security issues: The 5Gnetwork will be 200 times faster thantheir current 4G LTE. The promise is that 5G will bring speeds of around 10 gigabits per second to your phone. The faster the connectivity, the better it facilitates the malicious act also. The 5G comes with a large number of security vulnerabilities and is to pose a challenge to the Security Experts and Users. The rate of Cyber Crime will surely see a multifold jump, on the advent of the 5G in India.
4. WiFi Calling: WiFi Calling is will be the trend in the days to arrive. The news that Telecom Companies will provide connectivity of Voice Calls in the coming days, will also come with security issues like: ARP Spoofing/Poisoning Attacks; Side-Channel Attacks; Lack of Encryption on the Move; Calls By-passing Cellular Towers and Servers; etc.
5. The use of ML and AI: The dependency on Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) will see an increased trend in the next decade. There are Promises and Challenges of use of AI and ML, for Cyber Security. The Cyber Security industry has not yet adopted AI and ML into Cyber Security measures, as the threat of ‘False Positive’ and ‘Negative Learning’ has not been tamed to incorporate security. Automation of Cyber Security, is a more time taking process, than the adoption of AI and ML in Robotics and routine functions.
6. IoT in a Big Way: The implementation of IoT in all IT and ICT projects will see an upward graph in the ensuing years. However, the impact of IoT security threats can prove to be a major issue in the implementation of IoT. The very fact that the perpetrators are provided with better connectivity and the fact that the objects of attack are available in plenty, poses a threat to the IoT proliferation. Attackers can exploit security vulnerabilities in IoT infrastructure to execute sophisticated cyber attacks. The threats due to: Denial of service (DoS), Man-in-the-Middle (MiTM), Botnets, Advanced persistent threats (APTs), Ransomware attacks, Ease of Wireless Attack, etc, is also an impediment in the implementation and incorporation of IoT in IT and ICT projects.
7. Cloud Computing and Storage: The improved connectivity and through-put and faster computation will tempt consumers to buy applications with AMC rather than investing in individual Hardware. Consumers will switch to SaaS (Software-as –a- Service) and IaaS (Infrastructure-as –a- Service). The License on CPU/Hardware and the burden of continuous up-gradation and Renewal of Licenses will be done away with.
8. The Trend to adopt Open Source Software over Licensed Regime: The more developers, are open to publicise their coding and provide the same under GNU GPL, is a trend that has already begun. The fact that more and more software is available for free download and free usage will prompt the end of the License Regime.  
9. Government Policy: The Government is sensitive to the proliferation of IT and ICT, so is the need for regulation and better dissemination. Recently even the UN had give a green signal to look into a New Treaty to Combat Cybercrime in the International Arena. Further, the Government of India is pushing hard to further IT/ICT/Encryption/IoT/Cyber Security with its robust initiatives like National Cyber Security Policy, IoT Policy, National Digital Communication Policy 2018, The National Encryption Policy, Data Protection Policy, Electronic Media Management Policy, Social Media Policy, Revision of IT Act, etc.

10. Growth of Data Centers in India: The Digital Revolution in India is presently at the cost of hosting services and system in foreign soil. The passing of the Data Protection Bill will prompt the industry to honor Data Sovereignty and Data Localisation. This then will trigger the growth of Data Center establishment on Indian Soil.

Heading into 2020, we will see the emergence of OT to IT attacks and an increase in the discovery of new attack vectors in the operational worldwide. The Consumers will encounter new innovative attacks in Fiscal Domain, as the play-field is vast and lucrative. Today India has over With 650 million Internet users and this figure is there only to increase, as the digital domain extends to Rural India. The market for Cyber Security is here to stay. The global Cyber Security market is booming, and the market is expected to surpass $100 billion in 2020. India cannot stay out of this trend.