A new global Kaspersky Security Services report ‘Anatomy of a Cyber World’ reveals a blind spot in enterprise Security Operations Centers (SOCs): while performance is typically measured by detection and response speed, organisations rarely assess whether they’re detecting the right threats.

Large portions of collected telemetry don’t enter real-time detection pipelines, creating hidden gaps that internal assessments tend to miss – and fuelling demand for independent SOC Consulting to uncover them.

As organisations continue to invest in SOCs, measuring the real performance of these departments remains a challenge. Operational effectiveness depends not only on the volume of collected data, but on how well that data is used for detection.

According to a recent Kaspersky global survey, organisations typically evaluate SOC effectiveness through a limited set of key performance indicators: mean time to respond (MTTR) and detect (MTTD) dominate the picture, while deeper indicators like false positive rates or cost per incident remain secondary.

The real question is not just how fast the SOC responds, but whether it is detecting threats before they escalate.

The findings from the Kaspersky Security Services Global Report tell a consistent story: most SOCs are collecting far more data than they are using for detection.

The mean correlation rule coverage across assessed organisations stands at 43%, meaning that on average, active detection logic covers less than half of all ingested data sources.

The rest sits in the platform, available for retrospective investigation, threat hunting, or compliance purposes, but invisible to real-time detection.

This gap is not always unintentional. Some data is deliberately collected outside the scope of active correlation, serving investigation or regulatory requirements. But in many cases, sources are onboarded without a clear detection plan or with rule development deferred and never completed.

However, this is more typical of mature SOCs: in less mature environments, the data is often collected but never actually used.

There are several reasons for that, including sources onboarded ahead of planned rule development, compliance-driven collection without active correlation requirements, unclear internal ownership of detection logic, and resource constraints deferring engineering work indefinitely.

However, the result is the same either way: significant portions of the environment are effectively unmonitored in real time.

What makes this harder to solve is that the problem tends to grow with the organisation. SOCs managing the highest data volumes cover only around 30% of their sources with active detection logic.

As infrastructure expands, detection engineering capacity rarely scales at the same pace. The sources most consistently left without coverage are network telemetry, databases, and web servers – foundational infrastructure that should be at the core of any detection strategy.

The approach to detection logic itself varies widely. Around 50% of assessed SOCs rely primarily on vendor-provided rule sets, while roughly 40% build their logic from scratch. Vendor-reliant teams frequently face elevated false-positive rates and coverage gaps from insufficient tuning; those dependent on EDR carry blind spots where cross-source correlation is absent.

Meanwhile, a lot of organisations set their SOC’s detection scope at initial design and never revisit it, meaning blind spots accumulate silently as infrastructure evolves.

“Even with defined KPIs in place, assessing SOC effectiveness internally remains difficult due to insider view bias, which is why organisations are turning to external SOC Consulting to evaluate detection logic, analyse event flows and simulate attacks to understand what is actually being caught.

To improve, organisations should build a structured detection engineering process: a repeatable discipline for developing, validating and regularly reviewing detection logic,” comments Roman Nazarov, Head of SOC Consulting at Kaspersky.

To align internal processes and technologies with today’s evolving threat landscape, organisations can explore Kaspersky SOC Consulting, which helps build an in-house SOC from scratch, assess the maturity of an existing one, or enhance specific capabilities such as detection and response procedures.

In 2025, the most common consulting projects were SOC Technical Assessment (23.4%), SOC Framework Development (20%) and both SOC Maturity Assessment and SIEM Quality Assurance (11.7% each), reflecting a growing demand for deeper visibility into SOC performance.

To learn more about SOC detection effectiveness and practical steps to strengthen your security monitoring, read the full report.

The ‘Anatomy of a Cyber World’ is a comprehensive global report drawing on incident statistics from Kaspersky Managed Detection and Response, Kaspersky Incident Response, Kaspersky Compromise Assessment and Kaspersky SOC Consulting, shedding light on the most prevalent attacker tactics, techniques and tools, as well as the characteristics of detected incidents and their distribution across regions and industry sectors.

Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has identified Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) as critical technologies for improving business efficiency, accelerating innovation and supporting Nigeria’s ambition to build a $1 trillion digital economy.

Aminu Maida, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NCC, made this known at the 17th edition of Nigeria Communications Week and Africa’s Beacon of ICT Merit and Leadership Award held in Lagos.

Represented by Toluwalase Modele Rufai, Acting Controller of the NCC Lagos Office, Maida said AI and IoT had evolved from emerging technologies into powerful tools driving productivity, reducing operational costs and creating competitive advantages across multiple sectors.

Speaking on the theme, “Impact of AI and IoT on Business Operational Efficiency,” he described the technologies as indispensable to Nigeria’s economic transformation agenda.

“This year’s theme is not only timely but profoundly important. As Nigeria accelerates its journey toward a $1 trillion digital economy, Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things have moved from futuristic concepts to present-day drivers of productivity, cost optimisation and competitive advantage across every sector,” he said.

According to him, AI-powered predictive analytics is helping manufacturers anticipate equipment failures before they occur, reducing downtime and maintenance costs, while IoT-enabled sensors are improving agricultural productivity through real-time monitoring of soil conditions.

He added that connected technologies are transforming logistics and supply chain management by improving visibility, reducing delays, lowering operational costs and enhancing customer satisfaction.

“Across banking, healthcare, smart cities, manufacturing and governance, these technologies are streamlining operations, automating routine tasks and unlocking data-driven decision-making that was unimaginable just a decade ago,” he said.

Maida, however, stressed that the successful deployment of AI and IoT depends largely on the availability of resilient and high-capacity telecommunications infrastructure.

“At the heart of every AI and IoT deployment lies one critical enabler: resilient, high-capacity connectivity. Without secure, scalable broadband networks, the full promise of real-time data exchange, seamless device interoperability and intelligent automation remains unfulfilled,” he said.

The NCC boss said the commission was reviewing the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (NNBP) 2020–2025 to improve efficiency and sustainability within the telecommunications sector.

He disclosed that the commission was also engaging state governments to reduce Right-of-Way charges and administrative bottlenecks in order to accelerate fibre-optic infrastructure deployment nationwide.

According to him, the NCC has made harmonised spectrum resources available to support mobile broadband, fixed wireless access and IoT services, while the 2026–2030 Spectrum Roadmap is expected to create additional opportunities for broadband expansion and emerging technologies.

“With broadband penetration exceeding 52 per cent and growing 4G and 5G adoption, these efforts enhance efficient spectrum management, drive innovation, provide regulatory certainty and position Nigeria in line with global best practices,” he said.

Maida also highlighted the commission’s recently introduced General Authorisation Framework, which provides a regulatory sandbox for innovators to test AI, IoT, blockchain and other emerging technologies in a controlled environment.

He noted that the NCC had strengthened cybersecurity and consumer protection through initiatives such as the designation of telecommunications infrastructure as Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII), adoption of a Zero-Trust cybersecurity framework and implementation of guidelines for secure AI and IoT deployment.

The NCC chief emphasised the need for collaboration among government agencies, regulators, operators, technology providers, academia and investors to address challenges such as inadequate power supply, skills shortages, data privacy concerns and consumer protection issues.

“The NCC remains fully committed to creating an enabling, predictable regulatory environment that attracts investment, spurs innovation and delivers inclusive growth,” he said.

Maida urged stakeholders to work collectively towards building a digitally empowered nation where AI and IoT technologies not only improve business efficiency but also transform lives, strengthen the economy and position Nigeria as a leader in Africa’s digital future.

The event brought together regulators, industry leaders, innovators and other stakeholders to discuss emerging trends, policy directions and technological innovations shaping Nigeria’s digital economy.

Bloomberg has released its second annual “25 African Startups to Watch” list, underscoring the growing influence of venture-backed innovation across the continent.

Published thursday, the list highlights companies building solutions in “environments where infrastructure or systems have failed to deliver.”

The featured start-ups build solutions to challenges such as accessing healthcare in Chad, moving goods in Kenya, securing loans in South Africa, and safeguarding borders in Nigeria.

Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya jointly lead with four companies each, reflecting the ongoing strength of Africa’s three most visible start-up ecosystems.

The 25 companies span 13 countries and sectors including healthcare, fintech, security, climate resilience, waste management, and transport.

Nigeria’s four startups are 10mg Health, Remedial Health, Sycamore and Terra Industries, covering areas from healthcare financing and pharmaceutical supply chain integrity to digital lending and defence technology.

South Africa’s contingent includes Omnisient, Amesect, AURA and Jem. Omnisient uses grocery purchase data and AI to extend credit to those outside traditional financial systems.

Kenya’s notable four include Zeraki, a school-data analytics platform partnering with Safaricom to reach secondary students across the country.

According to Bloomberg, a defining theme this year is the source of funding.

Nearly half of the total capital raised by these start-ups came from African investors, marking a shift from previous years when international capital predominantly drove early growth.

International backers such as 8VC, controlled by Palantir Technologies co-founder Joe Lonsdale, and Google continue to see value in investing in African companies, Bloomberg noted.

The report also highlights that start-ups across the continent almost doubled their debt fundraising in 2025, even as equity financing from venture capital firms declined.

Separately, the Start-up Ecosystem Report 2026 states that Kenya has overtaken Nigeria as Africa’s top startup investment destination, attracting $984 million in 2025.

Jennifer Zabasajja, Bloomberg Television’s chief Africa correspondent and anchor, highlighted the dual significance of the list, the variety of solutions being built and the growing role of African-sourced capital in backing them.

She noted that the list comes at a consequential moment, one shaped by global disruptions, from the conflict in Iran to sweeping cuts in US foreign healthcare assistance, that have made the case for African-owned capital more urgent than ever before.