Aussie CIOs to double down on cyber security in 2024

Australian CIOs are looking to buckle down and give their cyber security standings a considerable boost, new analysis has found.

According to the Australian Information Industry Association’s (AIIA) first AIIA Tech Index, which is based on responses from 116 respondents, CIOs’ top worry in the next 12 months is the disruption caused by cyber security incidents.

The report, which aims to measure the buying sentiment for Australia’s IT sector, also found 56 per cent of respondents consider cyber security to be a major buying decision for their respective business within the next 12 months, ranking higher than any other technology area.

When expanded to the next one to two years, cyber security is still a key buying decision for CIOs, albeit falling to second place at 34 per cent. This is behind cloud, which is a key decision for 44 per cent of CIOs.

Further, cyber security solutions are to receive the highest level of additional spending, with 79 per cent of respondents saying they plan to invest into it. When looking at net new spending, artificial intelligence (AI) came in first, at 28 per cent.

The need for more cyber security permeates to hiring decisions as well, with cyber security skills being the most in-demand among CIOs, according to 91 per cent of respondents.

AIIA CEO Simon Bush said the report was encouraging because “it shows the industry simultaneously investing in defending and modernising their business operations and in retraining in-house talents.”

“We want to encourage greater innovation and the upskilling of the Australian workforce,” he said. “The temperature check assuages fears of job disruptions and helps governments and industry understand we should focus our efforts on cyber security and data analytics training and accreditation.”

The Index was created in partnership with Info-Tech Research Group (ITRG), an international information technology research and advisory firm.