Traditional security investments failing.

The cost of security breaches is far outpacing the increase in traditional security investments that are being made by companies across the UAE and the Europe, Middle East and Africa (Emea) region, experts said.

Highlighting the results of a new study commissioned by VMware, in partnership with Forbes Insights, security experts pointed out that a large number of businesses are failing to recognise and properly prioritise the nature of their security investments. The study revealed that 76 per cent of business leaders and IT security practitioners across the Emea region believed that their security solutions are outdated, even though 42 per cent said that they have acquired new security tools over the past year to address potential security issues. In the UAE, 90 per cent of business leaders and IT security practitioners believe their security solutions are outdated; while 50 per cent said that they had acquired new security tools over the past year.

It was found that 33 per cent of UAE respondents planned to spend more on detecting and identifying attacks, while 93 per cent said that they planned to increase the purchase or installation of new security products in the next three years.

Ahmed Auda, managing director for the Middle East, Turkey and North Africa at VMware, noted that investments...