Most companies will change their brand protection strategies to cover new cybersecurity and fraud threats in the next year, according to new research by MarkMonitor, the US-based brand protection company. And most, 72pc of firms said that brand protection is gaining attention across their organisation as a result of online threats.
The research polled marketing decision makers from across industries, and five countries. Over half of respondents identified the dark web as a risk to business, and 69pc said that cyber threats influence their domain name strategies. MarkMonitor found that the role of brand protection is shifting: 46pc of brands said there will be more involvement from board level, while a further 46pc said more involvement from IT and security teams is needed.
Chrissie Jamieson, VP of marketing, MarkMonitor, says: “This is a significant step forward for online brand protection, especially considering that nearly two-thirds of respondents believe infringement has increased over the last year. The fact remains that brand protection is gaining more attention within organisations because the threats to reputation, customers and the bottom line are increasing at pace, and this is being recognised at the highest levels.
“Coupled with fast-developing cyber threats, brands are recognising that the landscape is changing and they need to find the most effective ways to keep themselves and their customers safe, whether that’s through technology, working with a brand protection partner, hiring staff with the right skills, or a combination of all three.”
MarkMonitor suggests that in the next five years brand protection budgets will mainly be spent on hiring the right people, safeguarding domain names and company IP (intellectual property), fighting phishing and piracy, and bringing in new brand protection technologies. Those new technologies into brand protection will include: artificial intelligence (39pc), big data (37pc) and machine learning (33pc).
About the research
Commissioned by MarkMonitor and conducted by independent survey firm Vitreous World, it surveyed 600 marketing decision makers from the UK, United States, Germany, Italy and France. For the full research report visit: www.markmonitor.com/businessbarometer.
