As we approach 2025, critical infrastructure industries will undergo significant digital transformation driven by technological advancements and evolving security challenges. Technologies that enhance both cybersecurity and user efficiency are being prioritized to shape the frontline workforce of the future.
With cyberattacks surging in sophistication and frequency, and 87% of CISOs and tech executives increasing security spending by 2025, IT leaders face mounting pressure to keep pace with both threats and competition.
To optimize cybersecurity investments and prepare workforces for evolving demands, organizations will focus on simplifying current approaches to security through identity and access innovations.
The Frontline Workforce Needs Simple Security
Frontline workers are the backbone of critical infrastructure, often operating in high-pressure environments where time and efficiency are paramount. In fact, recent research reveals that frontline workers make up 80% of the global workforce, yet, 50% report feeling expendable at work, with many citing inadequate tools and training as contributing factors.
While this fact may seem insignificant to cybersecurity, feeling expendable often stems from feeling frustrated, which, for frontline workers, is the result of inefficient processes that get in the way of doing a simple job or task. Considering traditional security measures like complex password protocols and cumbersome authentication processes, coupled with the proliferation of mobile devices and applications complicating the landscape, this frustration comes as no surprise.
And unfortunately, despite implementing protocols to improve security, usability issues create the reverse effect. End-user security fatigue and frustration often results in workarounds or unintentional actions that compromise security like repeated or shared passwords, with stolen credentials being the most common data breach strategy – causing 24% of breaches, according to Verizon’s 2024 DBIR.
To address these challenges, security solutions must be intuitive and seamlessly integrated into daily workflows, empowering frontline workers to perform their duties without unnecessary hindrances.
Empowering Frontlines with Passwordless Access
Passwordless authentication has grown in popularity in recent years for its ability to mitigate the risk of unauthorized access. Now, it’s becoming a cornerstone of modern security strategies.
Given that 90% of end users manage over 90 online accounts, and the incidence of credential phishing has surged by 967% since late 2022, it's clear that traditional cybersecurity methods are becoming increasingly inadequate. By eliminating the need for traditional passwords, organizations can reduce the risk of credential theft—a common attack vector in cyber incidents.
In addition, embracing passwordless solutions is crucial for cybersecurity, particularly for frontline workers who often access multiple systems and applications under time-sensitive conditions. Passwordless authentication methods, such as biometric verification and security tokens, eliminate the need for traditional passwords, which are vulnerable to theft and often weak due to poor user practices, bolstering security and enhancing operational efficiency. Frontline workers benefit from quicker and more reliable access to critical systems, minimizing downtime and focusing more on their primary responsibilities.
Enhancing Mobility and Mitigating Human Error
In critical industries like healthcare and manufacturing, mobile devices are replacing workstations and desktop computers with the goal of making frontline workers’ lives simpler. Yet, employees need to manually log in and out of devices and individual apps, which becomes time-consuming and burdensome, often resulting in human errors like mismanaging passwords or failing to secure devices. This has a notable impact on security, with 54% of organizations experiencing a data breach stemming from unauthorized access on devices.
There’s also limited accountability for managing the physical location of these devices, resulting in many getting lost and becoming a drain on resources and budget, with organizations spending 203 hours replacing lost devices each year, costing over $5.45 million annually. Between increased security vulnerabilities, higher IT expenses, and diminished productivity – current mobile security strategies just won’t cut it in 2025.
So, IT and security leaders are deploying identity-centric mobile access and security strategies. By personalizing mobile devices to each user’s digital identity, organizations can manage device use across various devices and locations, thus extending operational capabilities beyond traditional boundaries. Passwordless authentication, single sign-on, device encryption, remote lock and wipe capabilities, asset tracking, and auditing logging, are key elements to enhancing mobile security and efficiency. This approach protects operational technology and ensures that security protocols do not hinder workflows.
Harnessing the Power of AI Innovation
While AI is growing in popularity, its rising use is not without concern. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently released it framework for AI deployment, emphasizing the need to understand AI vulnerabilities to secure critical infrastructure. This is critical, especially as almost all organizations (98%) use some form of AI.
While there are still unknowns and concerns around generative AI, traditional AI has become more prevalent, often used to enhance threat detection and response times. Traditional AI can also be used to help organizations evaluate existing workflows and security protocols to identify areas for improvements, ensuring they are both effective for security and non-intrusive for frontline workers. To ensure the secure and responsible use of AI, IT and security leaders should look for vendors with strong data privacy methods, robust encryption, security audits, and clear access controls.
Vendor Consolidation and Supply Chain Security
In the wake of supply chain attacks, organizations are focused on securing vendor and remote access. Third parties and vendors are essential to today’s business environment, but these interactions introduce vulnerabilities, as over half of organizations (56%) report third-party data breaches and lack effective controls.
As a result, organizations look to reduce the number of third parties they work with, vendor consolidation will trend upward, as solutions which audit vendor access, automate credential management, and have strict access controls are being adopted to streamline system integrations and minimize risks, and to adhere to the principle of least privilege.
Heading into 2025, ensuring that cybersecurity measures keep pace with the needs of modern, dynamic work environments will ensure technologies work for both frontline workers and organizational security.
