Cisco Study Reveals 88 percent of Respondents in Saudi Arabia Consider Privacy a Business Imperative

Riyadh, KSA – gulftech – Privacy has become mission-critical to organizations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), according to a new report published by Cisco. Titled ‘2022 Data Privacy Benchmark Study’, the annual global review details the impact of privacy on organizations and their views towards data privacy, with 88 percent of organizations in KSA considering privacy a business imperative. The survey showed privacy investment continues to rise and organizations see a high return on investments from privacy spending.

Privacy has become a true business imperative and a critical component of customer trust for organizations around the world.  In Saudi Arabia, 88 percent of the respondents said they would not buy from an organization that does not properly protect its data, and 95 percent indicated that external privacy certifications are important in their buying process.  

“With the Kingdom recently issuing its first comprehensive national data protection law, further efforts have been directed towards the regulation and processing of data, with 95 percent of organizations saying they are reporting one or more privacy-related metrics to their board. In preparation for the law’s implementation this March, many organizations have also started assessing their activities and security systems with an average of 2 million dollars allocated to privacy investment in KSA,” explains Fady Younes, Cybersecurity Director – Cisco Middle East and Africa. “We also see privacy growing to bepart of the vital skills and core responsibilities for security professionals. This year’s study confirmed that aligning privacy with security creates financial and maturity advantages compared to other models.”

Privacy’s Return on Investment (ROI) remains high for the third straight year, with increased benefits for small to medium size organizations. On a global scale, more than 60 percent of respondents felt they were getting significant business value from privacy, especially when it comes to reducing sales delays, mitigating losses from data breaches, enabling innovation, and achieving efficiency. Organizations in Saudi Arabia have also been able to build trust with customers, as adequately protecting their data has allowed for repeat customers, according to 91 percent of respondents.

Privacy legislation continues to be very well received in the country, even though complying with these laws often involves significant effort and cost (e.g., cataloging data, maintaining records of processing activities, implementing controls – privacy by design, responding to user requests). Globally, 83 percent of all corporate respondents said privacy laws have had a positive impact, and only 3 percent indicated the laws have had a negative impact.

As governments and organizations continue to demand further data protection, they are putting in place data localization requirements. 92 percent of global survey respondents said this has become an important issue for their organizations. But it comes at a price – across all geographies, 88 percent said that localization requirements are adding significant cost to their operation.