When hackers exposed embarrassing emails, passwords, Social Security numbers and other sensitive data from Sony Pictures Entertainment in November last year, the world sat up and took notice. The data thieves (purportedly from North Korea) wreaked internal havoc at Sony and disrupted the planned rollout of its film The Interview, costing the company millions of dollars.
However, as an NBC News headline put it, “Sony Hack Is Bad, But the Real Cyberwar Is All Around You.”
Indeed, no entity is immune. Last year – dubbed “The Year of the Data Breach” by industry observers — high-profile cyber-attack victims included eBay, Domino’s Pizza, Target and Home Depot, along with financial institutions, media outlets and government websites. Damages from a single hack attack can reach millions of dollars.
No wonder cyber-security businesses abound worldwide. And second only to the United States, Israel is providing the most products to fight this costly crime. About 200 Israeli companies specialize in cyber-security, accounting for $3 billion worth of anti-hacking exports in 2013. One-quarter of the world’s venture capital-funded cyber-security startups are Israeli.
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