Throughout the pandemic, in-person events across every vertical including cybersecurity were forced to adopt a virtual format. Virtual events were not widely popular and on a large scale almost unheard of in pre-pandemic times, but as many organisations continue to use a remote or hybrid working model virtual events could be here to stay.
The virtual events platform, 6Connex reported that the number of virtual events it hosted was up by 1000% in just the first few months of the global pandemic with over 52,000 events and subevents being held on its platform alone.
To add to this, Bloomberg cited that the virtual events market was valued at $114 billion in 2021 and is expected to achieve a compound annual growth rate of 23.2% from 2020 to 2027. The state of the market shows that virtual events show no signs of slowing down.
However, with increased digital workloads and a vast amount of personal data collected for these events to take place, cybersecurity processes must be at the front and centre of every virtual event organiser's mind.
The Business Case for Virtual Events
According to Gartner, 41% of employees are likely to continue working remotely at least some of the time post coronavirus pandemic. The demand for remote working and flexibility is continuing to drive the demand for virtual events globally.
With an online format, organisations can attend many more events than they would be able to if everything was live and in-person. This can allow them to get in front of more potential leads quickly and at a lower cost due to no travel or accommodation expenses that are usually associated with events.
Organisations can easily choose which panels they’d like to attend depending on relevancy – the flexibility of virtual events also means they can drop in and out of the event when necessary, keeping productivity levels high.
Large Attendee Lists, Large Scale Hacks
Remote and hybrid working is ultimately driving the demand for greater cybersecurity capabilities in every aspect and virtual events is just one part of this. It is paramount for employees, employers and event organisers to be educated on the fundamentals of cybersecurity and how it can be detrimental to organisation and personal details if not prevented, detected and mitigated.
Cyberattacks come in many shapes and forms, there is no one size fits all. From ransomware to phishing attacks delegates that attend virtual events could be unknowingly putting their personal data including bank account details, employee data, personal or work passwords and more at risk.
Now that we’re coming out the other side of the pandemic, virtual event demand will continue to be present in almost every industry as it directly correlates with the digital transformation journey most organisations have undergone.
Everyone must take cybersecurity seriously in this instance and continue to develop smart innovative solutions to the emerging threat landscape. There is an opportunity to safely conduct virtual events, it just requires well thought out processes and a deep understanding of cybersecurity in today’s digital era.