Design and construction industry firms underestimate their vulnerability to cyberattacks, according to a new report, Data Resilience in Design and Construction: How Digital Discipline Builds Stronger Firms by Dodge Construction Network and content security and management company Egnyte.
Fifty-nine percent of firms responding to a survey experienced a cybersecurity threat within the last two years. General contractors were hit most frequently, with 70% experiencing a threat and 30% suffering a ransomware attack since 2021.
Successful attacks can be dire, with 77% of firms saying they would experience critical schedule delays if access to documentation is blocked for more than five days. Ransomware attacks often take a lot longer to resolve than just a few days, though.
The average duration of a successful ransomware attack in the U.S. ranged from 15 days to 26 days between the first quarter of 2020 and the second quarter of 2022, according to Statista, a company that operates a global data and business intelligence platform.
The study also says that the industry needs improvement on data resilience, which it defines as “the ability to access all project and business documents and data to support work at any time, from anywhere, and on any device.” Just 39% of AEC firms’ data networks meet that standard at least 90% of the time, “meaning most of the industry struggles with this issue.”
Related Stories
Architects | Apr 4, 2017
Architect Howard Elkus dies at 78
Cofounder of Elkus Manfredi Architects, his career spanned five decades, and included a spectrum of major design projects.
Building Team | Apr 4, 2017
Dispelling five myths about post-occupancy evaluations
Many assume that post-occupancy (POE) is a clearly-defined term and concept, but the meaning of POE in practice remains wildly inconsistent.
Structural Materials | Apr 3, 2017
Best of structural steel construction: 4WTC, Fulton Center, Pterodactyl win AISC IDEAS2 Awards
The annual awards program, sponsored by the American Institute of Steel Construction, honors the best in structural steel design and construction.
Green | Mar 29, 2017
Copenhagen Zoo and BIG unveil yin yang-shaped panda habitat
The new habitat will sit between two existing buildings, including the Elephant House designed by Norman Foster.
Architects | Mar 28, 2017
A restroom for everyone
Restroom access affects everyone: people with medical needs or disabilities, caretakers, transgender people, parents with children of the opposite gender, and really anyone with issues or needs around privacy.
High-rise Construction | Mar 27, 2017
Density and tall buildings
CRTKL’s Maren Striker examines Europe’s desire to build upward.
Architects | Mar 9, 2017
Watch Frank Lloyd Wright and Buckminster Fuller discuss architecture in animated video shorts
Given more time, Wright wanted to rebuild the country and change the nation.
Architects | Mar 6, 2017
Demolished Frank Lloyd Wright buildings get new life with photorealistic renderings
Architect David Romero recreated the Larkin Administration Building and the Rose Pauson House with detailed, fully colored renderings.
Building Team | Mar 6, 2017
AEC firms: Your website is one of the most important things you'll build
Don’t believe it? You’d better take a look at the research.
