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UAE consumers turning to mobile apps for finance and retail services
As businesses in the UAE double down on mobile apps in a bid to increase customer engagement and spending , they are seeing highly positive results for their efforts with the overall number of installs of mobile apps in the country growing 23 % in H1 2022 , compared to the same period last year . While finance apps were by and large the most successful , with installs growing a staggering
183 %, other categories that posted noteworthy app install growth included entertainment ( 31 %), travel ( 36 %), social ( 30 %) and food and drink ( 15 %).
“ It ’ s clear that as we emerge into the post-pandemic world , the accelerated momentum toward mobile that we ’ ve witnessed over the last two years has now created a mobile-first mindset among consumers and businesses ,” said Samer Saad , Regional Manager – Middle East , AppsFlyer .
“ Our findings indicate a growing preference for mobile apps as the primary engagement channel . While this is ushering in a new era of convenience for consumers , it has greatly increased the competitiveness of the space .
" Businesses must now seek innovative and measurable means of enhancing user experiences and increasing engagement on their mobile apps .”
A notable outlier was retail apps which saw overall installs drop 9 %. This is likely due to the surge the sector experienced throughout the pandemic , a feat that has been hard to replicate as consumers have regained their ability to visit physical stores .
Stress and career progression more concerning than cyberattacks
Cybersecurity professionals are more worried about day-today stress and lack of career progression than suffering a cyberattack , according to The Chartered Institute of Information Security ' s ( CIISec ) 2021 / 22 State of the Profession report – the seventh annual survey of the cybersecurity industry . In the survey of 315 security professionals , a third ( 32 %) of respondents said they are kept awake by job stress , a quarter ( 25 %) by lack of opportunity and only 22 % by their organisation suffering a cyberattack .
One way to reduce cybersecurity professionals ’ stress and allow them to focus on projects that would prove their worth and increase opportunities would be by following established best practices – using simple but effective guidelines to protect organisations against the most common cyberattacks . But the research reveals organisations have been slow to adopt industry standards . Almost half ( 49 %) do not follow the UK Government ’ s Cyber Essentials practices , which provide basic best practices ; and 20 % have formally adopted the NCSC ’ s Ten steps to cybersecurity guidance .
“ Failure to adopt industry standards puts security teams on the back foot when it comes to protecting organisations against cyberattacks and only adds to their day-to-day stress ,” said Amanda Finch , CEO of CIISec . “ Without investing time and effort
into making cybersecurity professionals ’ lives easier , organisations are setting themselves up for failure . People need to be supported in their roles – with the right processes in place , the skills to do their jobs effectively and clear paths to progress .” x
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