Fifteen major forces driving the civilian information security market

Abstract

The worldwide civilian information security market is growing at a compound rate of more than 20% per year, according to various market research studies. The market's recent growth differs from the growth of previous years. Rather than being a simple extrapolation of previous trends, the market is increasingly affected by a large number of dynamic forces. This article illuminates fifteen of the major forces that will shape the information security market in the next five to ten years. An understanding of these forces is particularly important to those in positions related to information security, especially new product developers, marketing and sales people, and information security practitioners. New product developers need to know where the market is going to accurately predict the demand for their products as well as understand the future environment in which their products must work. Marketing and sales specialists must know what drives the marketplace so they can appreciate why the market is expanding and, in particular, why prospects buy. Information security practitioners need to know about the major forces driving the market to convincingly explain to management why an increased investment in information security is prudent. Practitioners also need to be aware of these driving forces so that they can best plan their organization's future information security activities.