Ever wonder what type of person gets into incident response and what drives them to help organizations fend off cyberattacks on a daily basis? IBM sponsored a survey of over 1,100 responders worldwide to not only highlight the great work that responders have been doing but also gain a deeper understanding of the people behind the response so that we as a community can create environments that not only enable effective incident response but address the needs of the responder.
Key Insights from the Survey:
- A Sense of Service – Over a third of incident responders were attracted to the field by a sense of duty to protect and opportunity to help others and businesses. For nearly 80% of respondents, this was one of the top reasons attracting them to IR.
- Fighting Multiple Battlefronts – Amid a growing number of cyberattacks in recent years, 68% of incident responders surveyed stated it's common to be assigned to respond to two or more overlapping incidents simultaneously.
- Impact on Daily Life – The high demands of cybersecurity engagements also affect incident responders' personal lives, with 67% experiencing stress or anxiety in their daily lives. Insomnia, burnout and impact on social life or relationships followed as effects respondents cited. Despite these challenges, the vast majority acknowledged they have a strong support system in place.
Additional Resources
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John Dwyer
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