How Can Financial Incentives Influence Businesses to Develop Powerful Cybersecurity Strategies That are Beneficial to Society?

Overview:

Tax Breaks or Grants: We must first identify what type of financial incentive would be best for motivating a business to implement upgraded security measures. Tax breaks and grants are a highly effective way to appeal to companies with the highest grade cybersecurity measures. These financial incentives prove highly attractive to businesses and it’ll allow them to prioritize cybersecurity.
Public Recognition and Awards: Allowing for businesses to be publicly recognized and rewarded can enhance an organization’s reputation and motivate other organizations to be competitive. Competitiveness in the cybersecurity would be good for both revenue and upgraded security measures as it’ll set a new standard and challenge everyone to be creative and be better.

Development:

The reason for this development is due to the high rise of cybercrime in recent memory. According to cyber expert George Mutune “Cybercrime is projected to cost the world trillions of dollars in the coming years” (Mutune 2021). Mutune also goes on to talk about how cybercrimes are now headlined in the news everyday. Due to this ,financial incentives can effectively influence organizations to develop powerful cybersecurity strategies by making the investment in cybersecurity more financially attractive to organizations. We can determine the effectiveness of this study by exploring which types of financial incentives mentioned grants, or tax breaks would work best. The benefits society would reap from this study include; reduced cybercrime, upgraded cybersecurity measures, boost company reputation, and higher national security. Through this research we can also provide and highlight the best policy recommendations for all sectors in the cybersecurity industry.

Applying this Policy:

Focusing on the point of a powerful cybersecurity industry moving forward, organizations can strategically implement this policy into their business plan by teaching its employees the importance and cost benefits of a strong cybersecurity development.
Implementing guidelines: Working with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) would be the best way to implement a policy into effect.
Educational Programs: Training institutes and academic programs can emphasize the importance of cybersecurity and its lucrative benefits to persuade upcomers in the field.

National Scale:

The topic of financial incentives being used in the field of cybersecurity to develop powerful security measures that are beneficial to society fit perfectly on a national scale because it addresses the widespread and critical issue of cybercrime. The concern of cybersecurity is a national issue because it impacts everyone living in a targeted nation and also severely impacts the nation’s economy. Persuading all cyber organizations within a nation and throughout all sectors completely strengthens the nation’s foundation of cybersecurity and sets new standards. Overall, a more secure business environment can attract more foreign commerce and investments in a nation that prioritizes digital safety and has digital stability.

International Scale:

On an international scale, it is important to remember that cybercrimes and threats do not recognize borders. According to the cybercrime headline statistics from AAG there were over 236 million attacks recorded globally in just the first half of 2022 alone. Financial incentives can turn a new leaf in a global culture of cybersecurity awareness and in creating a new standard. Forming digital alliances in collaboration of financial incentives can lead to shared expertise, new resources, and innovation which would strengthen global cybersecurity. This approach would appeal to every nation because it’ll create a stable digital world and is very beneficial for our society worldwide.

Scholarly Journal

In the “Effective Cybersecurity: A Guide to Using Best Practices and Standards” book by William Stallings, Stallings described how the development and implementation of cybersecurity are extremely difficult. In Stallings advice: the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is the most prominent player” (Stallings 2018). Stallings explains how the NIST is the best way and key factor when moving with a cybersecurity implementation since they create the guides and framework for the industry. In digital business, researchers conducted a study on how to enhance cybersecurity, the result states that the government can not only upgrade cybersecurity practices but also control the behaviors of these organizations through incentives. “There are also many ways in which governments can stimulate desired behaviours or actions of organisations or individuals by providing incentives” (Wessels et al 2021). In the Mutune article, George Mutune touches on the topic of the first Cybersecurity regulations, laws, and fines that were implemented. “Morris became the first person to be charged successfully under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. He was fined $10000, sentenced to probation of three years… the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), also called the Financial Modernization Act, was enacted in 1999 to protect the personal data of customers of financial institutions” (Mutune 2021). These fines and sentences leave you to wonder “Are there any rewards for developing powerful security and following the rules?”

References

Griffiths, C. (2025, January 22). The latest Cyber Crime Statistics (updated January 2025): AAG IT support. AAG IT Services. https://aag-it.com/the-latest-cyber-crime-statistics/

Mutune, G. (2021, December 31). The quick and dirty history of cybersecurity. CyberExperts.com. https://cyberexperts.com/history-of-cybersecurity/

Stallings, W. (2018, July 20). Effective cybersecurity. Google Books. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=JMZlDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT26&dq=cybersecurity%2Bguidelines&ots=q-TqeH2ELJ&sig=3DJZ1csoWAA1r60WNnJe2ZEa120#v=onepage&q&f=false

Wessels, M., Brink, P. V. D., Verburgh, T., Cadet, B., & Ruijven, T. V. (2021, August 19). Understanding incentives for Cybersecurity Investments: Development and application of a typology. Digital Business. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666954421000132#bb0105

AHMED-KARGBO

Policy Paper 1