Global cyber security spending is expected to reach $60 billion in 2011 and is forecast to grow at 10 per cent every year during the next three to five years. That’s according to a new PwC report entitled Cyber Security M&A: Decoding Deals.

The report also shows that UK cyber security spending is expected to reach nearly £3 billion in 2011. The rise in M&A spending is down to rising global cyber threats, greater vulnerabilities across the market, particularly on devices such as the internet and mobile phones along with a growing awareness of companies of the need to protect their assets.

Barry Jaber, PwC’s UK-based security industry leader, says: “Deal activity in cyber security is expected to continue to grow given the fragmentation of the market and the attractive growth outlook. Technology and IT companies are making acquisitions to differentiate their offerings while defence firms continue to do deals to diversify away from shrinking defence budgets.”

The top 10 deals over the last three years feature only UK and US companies. The US accounts for more than half of all deals globally triggered by growing cyber threats and increasing awareness among both organisations and consumers of accelerating breaches and attacks.

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