In the survey, which was sponsored by HP, the institute's researchers tried to gain an understanding of how organisations handle security problems and crises in their IT departments.
According to Dr Ponemon, the study – which took in responses from companies in six European countries: the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands – found a high level of cyber threats, as well as a range of holistic integrated security strategies, which he said are essential in the battle against cybercrime.
One interesting facet of the survey, he told his audience, was the belief in many organisations that defensive security measures will improve over time.
But it's not all positive on the IT security front, Dr Ponemon explained, as many companies are struggling with inadequate security budgets and shortage of technologies plus expenditure.
"They are also wary of forced collaboration [on the security front] with government entities", he said, adding that the survey revealed that 94% of companies have observed that today's cybercrime is on a machine-to-machine basis.
He also announced that 87% of respondents said they believed that tackling cybercrime involves a high degree of stealth and secrecy, with 79% saying that automation is the key.
Interestingly, 68% said they think that think that cybercrime is unleashed by criminal syndicates, with 84% observing that financial services are the most vulnerable to attack.
The survey also found that 74% of IT professionals believe that technical software is vulnerable to cybercrime, whilst 64% believe that research and education facilities are also vulnerable.
According to Dr Ponemon, 71% of IT professionals in the survey said they thought zero-day threats are a serious risk, with 52% saying that software vulnerabilities are their main priority.