Cloud adoption and enterprise cybersecurity was analyzed in a recent report and survey by Nutanix. This year’s report revealed that the use of hybrid multicloud models is forecasted to double over the next one to three years as IT decision makers are facing new pressures to modernize IT infrastructures because of drivers like AI, security and sustainability.

As organizations continue to grapple with the complexities of moving applications and data across environments, the report highlighted the growing importance of hybrid multicloud infrastructure. The report found that security and innovation were the top drivers for moving applications from one environment to another over the past year. As AI takes center stage for businesses, respondents identified increasing investments to support AI strategy as their top priority, followed closely by investment in IT modernization.

Hybrid multicloud infrastructure deployments will become an infrastructure standard. Ninety percent of respondents are taking a “cloud smart” approach to their infrastructure strategy. Given the pervasiveness of this approach, it is no wonder that hybrid and multicloud environments have become the de facto infrastructure standard. Furthermore, over 80% of organizations believe hybrid IT environments are most beneficial to their ability to manage applications and data. Most importantly, this is now becoming an executive priority, with nearly half of respondents noting that implementing hybrid IT is a top priority for their CIO.

Ransomware protection is top of mind for both CXOs and practitioners but most organizations continue to struggle in the wake of attacks. Ransomware and malware attacks will remain existential threats to modern enterprises, with the cat-and-mouse game between malicious actors and enterprise security professionals set to continue throughout 2024. Yet, data protection and recovery remain a challenge, as 71% of respondents who experienced a ransomware attack reported taking days or even weeks to restore full operations. To help address this, 78% of organizations say they plan to increase investments in ransomware protection solutions throughout this year.

Read the full report here.