As we move into a whole new year, we have many things to think about and consider regarding our long-term health. While COVID-19 looks to stick around for another while yet due to the long-term timescale needed for vaccination, we do know that 2021 promises many boons in other avenues. However, with more of us stuck at home than ever before, you should definitely look to get the help that you need to make the right choice to stay safe. Many cybersecurity trends are expected to kick in across 2021; what, though, seem to be the most promising and exciting changes coming?
Virtual private network usage will explode
The first and perhaps most obvious change is going to come from the use of virtual private networks, or VPNs. If you are wondering what is a VPN, then you might wish to look further. These provide you with a network connection from somewhere else in the world, giving you the chance to:
- Browse parts of the web that might be blocked due to your geographic location.
- Get around blocks and other limits imposed on you by your internet provider.
- Surf the web with a greater level of anonymity and security than you have at present.
- Engage with tools like torrenting and streaming that you might not be able to do so today.
As you might imagine, such benefits can only become a positive for you in the years to come. 2021 will provide us with more VPN access ad opportunities than ever, and it is highly recommended that you look to use these to your advantage moving forward.
Home computers will be targeted
With more people working from home than ever, expect cyber attacks to become a more common occurrence on home computers. In the past, hackers and the like would focus their energies on companies and large-scale commercial computing. With offices becoming a thing of the past for some, though, it might make more sense for these kinds of people to target companies who are having people working at home.
There is a poor level of self-regulation for many home computers, and this will lead to a need for more home cyber security; especially for those who are working from home. We will see a large boon in the security industry thanks to the potentially incoming onslaught of cybersecurity attacks in the weeks and months to come.
Expect more multi factor authentication
Today, many people use tools like two factor authentications to stop others logging into their accounts without permission. That is why we highly recommend that you look to expect more authentication tools to come in; many more platforms will start to ask people for this kind of meaningful authentication.
This could be a year where we see less effort put into things like passwords as multi-factor authentication becomes the go-to solution. Given how sophisticated such attacks can be today, it should be no surprise to see a genuine concern about this problem among professionals.
Headline regulation to come
While nobody can expect globalised regulations for online security, more major and developed countries will start to really enforce regulation for cybersecurity. Already the industry is one of the most expensive to manage in the world; 2021 will likely be a year where governments begin to take these threats a bit more seriously and actually take action on their severity.
It’s for this reason that we highly expect more headline regulation to arrive in the coming weeks, months, and years. This is going to become a major talking point, and 2021 is likely to be a year where we see major governments around the world try to create more security pacts to keep themselves and their allies safer when online.
Network vulnerabilities will soar
Another reason why VPNs are becoming such a major talking point comes from the fact that networks at home will be nowhere near as robust as those in a commercial setting. Those used to their safe office network will need to do more to keep themselves safe wen working from home as their home network will likely lack the same strength.
As such, we should expect a pretty hefty rise in the number of network vulnerabilities that will be seen in home networks. Expect ISPs to use 2021 to try and boost their own in-house network strength, but it might take some ingenious planning from professionals in the workplace (even at home) to try and beef up security in the right way.
2021 promises to be an intriguing year if nothing else. For that reason, we highly recommend that you look to make cybersecurity a priority for your thoughts as we move into what is likely to be a very demanding, if exciting in some ways, year for everyone involved. Cybersecurity is going to be challenged in many new ways in 2021; making sure you are ready for that challenge is vital.