Pricewatercooperhouse has recently released a study revealing that in 2011 hackers have stolen US$ 1 billion from companies in Brazil. On the top of that, BSA (Business Software Alliance) ranked Brazil the least prepared nation to adopt cloud computing technology among the 24 countries that account for 80 percent of the world's information and communications technology.
In 2011 Hackers stole 1$bi from companies in Brazil
A recent survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) reveals that about one third of companies in Brazil (32%) was victim of cyber attacks last year. The world average is lower: 23%. In Brazil, 8% of the companies attacked had losses greater than $ 5 million. In total, hackers stole $ 1 billion from companies in Brazil in 2011.
The study polled 3,877 senior executives in 72 countries. It is breathtaking to notice that digital crime did not even appeared among the main concerns of those executives in 2009. Today, cyber crime is identified as the second worst headache for business leaders, behind theft of assets.
The PwC survey exposes that 71% of companies have discovered that digital thieves work in the company, the majority (67%) holding management positions.
What executives fear most, especially in Brazil (68% mentioned the subject, against 40% globally), is the loss of reputation. However, almost half of the senior executives polled by PwC did not know if his/her company had been the victim of a cybercrime.
BSA ranking by Cloud Police
BSA (Business Software Alliance) is the leading software trade association. It is an association of nearly 100 world-class companies, includingMicrosoft, Apple, Intel, and Siemens that invest billions of dollars annually to create software solutions.
Many in IT circles consider the move to the cloud inevitable. Some opinion makers like Carl Bass and David Baker from Wired magazine believe that cloud computing will radically revolutionize the way our societies are organized. However, the legal and regulatory frameworks surrounding cloud computing technology still need to evolve considerably.
BSA analyzed the 24 countries that account for 80 percent of the world's information and communications technology. These 24 countries were classified according to seven items: data privacy, cyber security, cyber crime control, protection of intellectual property, IT infrastructure, free trade, technology interoperability and harmonization of law.
Japan was deemed most prepared whilst Australia, Germany, the US and France were also ranked highly. The full, 24-country rankings, detailed findings, and policy blueprint are available here.
Ranking in the last position, Brazil is not “cloud-ready” yet. One of the main reasons is that “the country of the future” has no law that guarantees the privacy of cross-cloud data transfer and weak legislation against cybercrime. Besides, Brazil has not implemented appropriate laws to facilitate the development of ITCs (Information and Communication Technologies for Development).
According to BSA, Brazil’s existing criminal laws are out of line with international standards regarding digital crime. Brazil has gaps in the protection of intellectual property and has not signed the WIPO Copyright Treaty, an international treaty on copyright law adopted by the member states of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). The other main weaknesses are: online piracy is widespread and lawsuits rare.
Brazil should see its weak “digital legal system” as an opportunity that needs to be addressed urgently. The focus must not be to have identical laws as Japan, or any other country in the top of the list, but to have internationally compatible laws. Privacy and security regulations should be the top priorities. Strong laws should not only put an end to the impunity hackers face but also promote good data stewardship and encourage e-commerce growth.
The study appoints that the lack of consistency in laws and economic polices across nations is undercutting the full of potential of the global cloud computing market, "In a global economy, you should be able to get the technology you need for personal or business use from cloud providers located anywhere in the world," said BSA President and CEO Robert Holleyman in a statement. "But that requires laws and regulations that let data flow easily across borders. Right now, too many countries have too many different rules standing in the way of the kind of trade in digital services we really need."
The main positive factor highlighted by the report was Brazil’s National Broadband Plan, the federal government initiative to provide broadband internet access to low-income population.
Brazil is moving but not fast enough. The federal government will soon launch a bid for a consulting firm to perform a survey on how Brazil can become more competitive in cloud computing. One of the main goals of this study is to identify the necessary conditions to transform South America’s largest country into a world-class data center hub.
This study will assess items such as infrastructure, international scenarios and regulatory issues. The report will be funded by UNESCO and is led by the Ministries of Science, Technology and Innovation and Communications. The project will also involve the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade since some measures will require tax incentives.
Brazil wants to assume the role of cloud services provider. The main pre requisites for becoming a world-class data center are: privacy, security, cheap labor, reliability, cost of energy as well as political and cultural stability. Brazil’s main obstacles are the high cost of telecom and electricity.
The time schedule for the final action plan has not yet been defined. Issues of regulation must be the most time consuming. Experts believe that the agenda will be ready by the end of the year.
Brazil's big chance to quickly turn the current situation around is the pressure to host FIFA’s Soccer World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016. The mega events will require rapid development of IT infrastructure and the strengthening of policies. Hopefully, at the end of the competitions there will be a great legacy left that could be useful for cloud computing.
Another source of pressure that will hopefully speed up the process are the pressure of big companies in Brazil towards better regulation to stop hacker attacks. In January 2012 alone, nine government agencies or major banks, including HSBC and Citibank, were attacked by Brazilian supporters of Anonymous. For more information about hackers in Brazil, read Parmy Olson's article " How Twitter Helped Brazil Become a Hotbed for Hacktivists."
