How cybersecurity readiness is good for the economy

In this guide

• Cybersecurity readiness
• Readiness tasks
• Lessons from the Pandemic
• Readiness careers
• Cybersecurity economics
• Future outlook

Cybersecurity readiness will have become a central pillar for economic stability and global security, a critical evolution from its prior secondary importance.

Recent economic shifts highlight this urgency. The minor 0.3 percent US GDP contraction in Q1 2025 contrasts sharply with the pandemic’s severe financial impact, which saw an unprecedented 8.9 percent US GDP drop in Q2 2020 and even greater losses in other major economies.

While current economic fluctuations are driven by trade, unlike the pandemic’s systemic freeze, the long-term policy effects are uncertain. The 2020-2021 pandemic years were a turning point for cybersecurity, exposing vulnerabilities and accelerating digital adoption.

This article examines the lasting consequences of pandemic-era cybersecurity failures, the improvements in defenses, and the key elements of cybersecurity readiness against advanced threats.

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• Cybersecurity resource center
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• Get ready to land a job in cybersecurity with this prep guide
• Understanding how cybersecurity is critical for small businesses
• What small businesses need to know about cybersecurity

What is cybersecurity readiness?

Cybersecurity readiness is a crucial part of the readiness economy. It’s a state of readiness to defend businesses from cyber assaults, as well as the capacity to recover from a successful attack. In other words, it’s the ability to expect, prevent, detect, and respond to cyber threats.

To further explain, cybersecurity readiness refers to:

The ability to anticipate and prevent cyberattacks:

This includes having the right policies and procedures in place to prevent attacks from happening in the first place. It also includes training employees on cybersecurity best practices and investing in the latest security technologies.

For example, in the present time, the worldwide DDoS attack count reached 398 million requests per second (rps). So it is of imperative importance to be prepared for these (and other) types of attacks.

The ability to detect and respond to cyberattacks:

This includes having the right tools and processes in place to detect an attack and then taking steps to mitigate the damage. It also includes having an incident response plan and working with a security operations center (SOC) to monitor attacks.

The ability to recover from successful cyberattacks:

This includes a plan to restore systems and data after an attack. It also refers to investing in things like backup and disaster recovery solutions.

Other cybersecurity readiness tasks

• Conducting risk assessments:
  • This includes identifying and assessing your organization’s systems and data risks. It also refers to things like conducting vulnerability assessments and penetration tests.
• Developing security policies and procedures:
  • This includes creating and implementing policies and procedures to help protect your organization’s systems and data. This can include things like making an acceptable use policy or a password management policy.
• Ensuring compliance with security regulations:
  • This includes ensuring that your organization’s security practices comply with relevant security regulations.
• Implementing security controls:
  • This includes implementing the security controls that are appropriate for your organization. This can include things like firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and encryption.
• Monitoring and auditing security:
  • This includes monitoring your organization’s security posture and auditing its compliance with security policies and procedures.
• Conducting mock cyber attacks:
  • This will help you prepare for potential attacks and help you fine-tune your security controls.
• Keeping cybersecurity insurance up-to-date:
  • This can help offset the costs of a successful cyberattack.
• Developing current industry cybersecurity and information security policies:
  • This will help keep your organization’s systems and data secure.
• Only allowing secure remote access to data for users: 
  • This will help prevent unauthorized access to your organization’s data.
• Implementing two-factor authentication:
  • This will help to prevent unauthorized access to your organization’s systems and data.
• Running vulnerability assessments regularly:
  • This will help you identify and fix any security vulnerabilities in your organization’s systems and data.

Cybersecurity Lessons from the Pandemic

The Surge in Cyberattacks – The COVID-19 pandemic created a perfect storm for cybercriminals. As governments scrambled to manage public health crises and businesses rushed to migrate their operations online, cyber attackers found abundant opportunities to exploit weaknesses.

• Ransomware Surge: Ransomware incidents surged by almost 150 percent in 2020, hitting critical sectors like healthcare, finance, and corporate networks. Hospitals already overwhelmed by COVID-19 suffered crippling cyber disruptions affecting vital patient data and emergency services.
• Phishing and Social Engineering Thrive: The shift to remote work expanded security vulnerabilities, making employees prime targets for phishing schemes. Attackers impersonated government bodies, offering fake aid to steal credentials and sensitive information.
• Supply Chain Exploitation: Increased reliance on third-party cloud vendors created new attack vectors within global supply chains. The 2020 SolarWinds attack served as a stark warning, illustrating how compromising a single software provider could impact hundreds of prominent organizations.

Remote Work and the Expansion of the Attack Surface – Overnight, millions of employees transitioned to working from home, creating security blind spots that organizations struggled to patch. Many businesses lacked cybersecurity frameworks for remote operations, leading to exposed credentials, weak authentication, and inconsistent access controls.

• Vulnerable Home Networks: Employees using personal devices and unsecured home Wi-Fi create easily exploitable entry points for cyberattacks.
• Cloud Security Challenges: The accelerated adoption of cloud services introduced new security risks, with companies often migrating data without adequate encryption or monitoring mechanisms.
• Risks Associated with Collaboration Platforms: While essential for business continuity, security vulnerabilities in platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams have led to cyber intrusions and data breaches.

Most sought-after careers in the cybersecurity readiness economy

It takes a team of skilled cybersecurity professionals to prevent, prepare, detect, respond, and recover from an attack. Some of the most in-demand cybersecurity jobs include:

• Security analysts:
  • Security analysts identify and investigate security threats. They also work with other teams to develop and implement security solutions.
• Security engineers:
  • Security engineers design, build, and maintain secure systems. They also work with other teams to test and deploy security solutions.
• Incident response specialists:
  • Incident response specialist triages and investigates security incidents. They also work with other teams to develop and implement incident response plans.

Of course, project managers, product managers, and other roles need to help manage and coordinate the work of these cybersecurity professionals.

Why is cybersecurity well-positioned for the post-pandemic economic recovery?

Cybersecurity is essential to the readiness economy because it helps organizations protect themselves from future disruptions.

In the wake of the pandemic, we’ve seen a surge in cyberattacks as scammers try to take advantage of struggling businesses.

In fact, in 2020, phishing attacks increased in number, accounting for 1 out of every 4,200 emails. The cybersecurity industry was already growing before the pandemic, but the pandemic sped up this growth.

There are several reasons cybersecurity is well-positioned for post-pandemic economic recovery:

• First, the pandemic sped up the trend of digital transformation. This has led to more organizations moving their operations online, which has increased the need for cybersecurity solutions.

• Second, the pandemic also highlighted the importance of having a robust cybersecurity infrastructure. The pandemic has resulted in more people working from home, increasing the need for cybersecurity solutions. Home networks are often not as secure as corporate networks.

• Third, as online activity increases, cybercriminal activity has also increased. This has led to an increase in the need for cybersecurity solutions.

• Fourth, the pandemic has forced many organizations to reevaluate their business continuity plans. Many organizations realized they need to have a plan in place in case of another major disruption. This has led to an increased demand for cybersecurity solutions that can help organizations recover from an attack.

• Finally, the pandemic has created a new awareness of the importance of cybersecurity. The media coverage of the increase in cyberattacks has led to more people understanding the need for cybersecurity solutions.

The future of cybersecurity

This 2025, cybersecurity readiness is not merely a technical checklist—it is part of a nation’s and an organization’s economic infrastructure. It ensures the smooth functioning of digital services, builds trust among stakeholders, protects innovation pipelines, and contributes directly to GDP growth and employment.

Policymakers, business leaders, and technology providers must therefore view cybersecurity not just as a cost center but as a strategic economic enabler. Those who invest wisely today will be the economic leaders of tomorrow.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• US GDP Q1 2025 | Sourced from CNBC in May 2025
• 2020 Threat Landscape Trends | Sourced from Security.com in May 2025
• Cybersecurity solutions | Sourced from Security Review Magazine in May 2025
• Worldwide DDoS attacks | Sourced from CSHUB.com in May 2025