“Humans remain the weakest link in security” – Muntasir Bdair, Security Matterz

Humans remain the weakest link in the complex chain that is the cybersecurity industry according to Muntasir Bdair, COO at Security Matterz.

The Saudi Arabia-based IT security leader has been championing and pioneering new technologies and solutions in the cybersecurity space for the best part of a decade. It’s innovative approach to security challenges has seen it become the market incumbent in the KSA and has established itself as a key player all over the GCC region.

CNME managed to secure an exclusive interview with Bdair who has played a central role in the continued success and growth of the company.

CNME Editor Mark Forker spoke to Bdair on the floor of GITEX Technology Week which was held at the Dubai World Trade Center. In a compelling interview, the COO of Security Matterz articulated the role it is playing in terms of making Saudi Arabia more secure as we enter an era being labelled by ICT analysts as Industry 4.0.

He also highlighted how the company is attempting to better educate businesses and citizens on the perils they may encounter in the world of cybersecurity, claiming they remain the weakest link.

Bdair said, “We’re investing in new training programs that are based around increasing the awareness on the pitfalls that can be encountered in cybersecurity. People continue to be the weakest link, but we need to try and bridge this gap and improve the education on security. We’re establishing an academy in Riyadh, and we believe this will be a key step in terms of helping us achieve our objectives.”

Cybersecurity attacks are on the increase and are becoming much more sophisticated, but according to the COO of Security Matterz it’s the price the industry has got to pay for the emergence of new technologies.

He added, “The proliferation of cyberattacks is happening because of the openness that has been created by the advancements made in technology – and you can see that perfectly here at GITEX. There are so many new technologies on display here at GITEX that are continuing to create that openness in the IT ecosystem. Unfortunately, despite the many benefits these disruptive technologies bring they also come with enhanced risks and we need to create better solutions to protect ourselves.”

The dynamic executive is upbeat about the future and despite being acutely aware of the challenges he is also cognizant of the fact that there are a lot of opportunities being borne out of these security obstacles.

Bdair added, “There is a lot of talk about technologies like the Internet of Things – and we’ve seen a collapse between IT and operational technology, and these are all new frontiers that are bringing new challenges but also new opportunities to secure the infrastructure for us.”

As aforementioned above the company has established itself as the go-to security solutions provider in Saudi Arabia, and Bdair is confident they can solidify their status in the market as they look ahead to 2020.

Bdair said, “We’re going to continue to focus on providing consultancy services around the ISO 22301 Business Continuity Certification as well other standards and compliance regulations. We provide advanced cyber defense consultancy around security operation centres, security architecture reviews and other technical services and the diversification of our portfolio is what differentiates us from our rivals.”

“We’re also providing and expanding our offering. We already have a managed security services as Security Matterz, but we’re enhancing it and are in the process of building our cybersecurity centre, where we will offer more managed security services through that centre. All these services together with our existing history as being a market leader in cybersecurity will enable us to provide unique services to our customers in Saudi Arabia.”