MARCH OF THE CYBER WARRIORS
Shares in security firms soar after NHS hacking attack...
ShareS in cyber security groups soared yesterday as investors bet on a surge in spending by governments and businesses desperate to protect themselves from hacking attacks.
as the fallout from the global ransomware virus that hit the NhS and many other organisations continued, London-listed firms including NCC, Sophos, eCSC and Falanx shot up in value.
The rise in share prices – which were echoed by cyber giants in the US – came as businesses moved to bolster their defences against another assault after the weekend’s Wannacry virus.
Ian Mann, a former GChQ adviser and founder of cyber consultancy eCSC, said: ‘as people want to improve their security there’s going to be opportunities for organisations like ours to satisfy that demand.
‘Cyber security is at the forefront of people’s minds, but every time we have an incident it does refocus people. Boards of directors are taking notice.’
eCSC shares rose 25pc, or 99p, to 495p – taking its gains since listing in London in December at 167p to 196pc.
a recent report by the World economic Forum warned that large-scale cyber attacks were among the biggest threats facing the world today.
Spending by companies on protection is set to increase by 10pc in Britain by 2020, according to Brian Lord, a cyber expert at risk management firm PGI who spent 21 years working for Government intelligence service GChQ.
‘In many companies there’s been an increase in investment in IT but not in the security that sits around it, so this investment is likely to play a bit of catchup,’ said Lord.
Shares in FTSe250 firm Sophos rose 7.3pc, or 24.8p, to a record high of 366p while NCC was up 2.7pc and Falanx gained 7.7pc. The ISe cyber security exchange traded fund was also on the rise. In New York, Fireeye, Symantec, Palo alto Networks and Cyberark Software also made gains in early trading.
But Microsoft drifted lower amid concerns over reputational damage following the attack.
Mann said eCSC had been called out several times over the weekend to organisations hit by the attack – but had prioritised NhS trusts. ‘We had zero callouts from our own clients, which shows this was preventable,’ he said. Cambridge-based Darktrace is among the cyber security firms that claimed to have beaten back Wannacry over the weekend.
While not listed, it is considered to be one of the darlings of the burgeoning cyber security industry. emily Orton, director and co-founder, said: ‘It’s a big day for the cyber security industry. We are happy we have been able to detect it for our customers.’