Business · India Bureau
Nearly all Indian firms hit by major cyber attacks in past year
A Cisco study finds 96 per cent of Indian organisations experienced significant cyber incidents in the past 12 months, with over one-third involving AI-powered attacks. Internal organisational delays and coordination failures pose greater risks than technology gaps.
LSN India ·
Nearly all major organisations in India have fallen victim to material cyber incidents over the past year, according to findings from technology company Cisco's latest security assessment. The research, which surveyed 1,000 Indian security professionals among 8,000 globally across 30 markets, reveals that 96 per cent of Indian firms experienced business-disrupting cyber events, with more than one-third involving artificial intelligence-enhanced attacks.
The Cisco Relentless Defense Report identifies a critical vulnerability extending beyond technical defences. Internal organisational friction—including cumbersome approval processes, siloed information systems and poorly coordinated teams—represents a more significant barrier to strengthening cyber resilience than technological limitations. These structural inefficiencies hamper organisations' ability to detect, respond to and remediate threats swiftly.
India's cyber resilience performance scored 66 out of 100 on Cisco's comprehensive evaluation framework, marginally exceeding the global average of 64. The assessment measured three key dimensions: the completeness of environmental protection, the speed of threat detection and remediation, and the operational bottlenecks impeding defence capabilities. Despite the above-average score, the high incident rate underscores persistent vulnerabilities across Indian enterprises of all sizes and sectors.