The time is surely ominous and reports of failures are hitting the office desks consecutively. This time it is the information technology (IT) security market and the growth of the same in Asia Pacific has plunged to 28.3 percent in 2008 from 36 percent a year before. The report has enough substance as it has been made by a foremost global IT industry researcher.

Speaking on this IT sector tracker Gartner stated, “This growth is remarkable considering in the fourth quarter of 2008, global economies began to feel the impact of the credit crunch and the global economic downturn.” “Double digit growth in a challenging economic climate confirms that security remains a key priority for Asia Pacific chief information officers and IT security leaders,” said Matthew Cheung, senior research analyst at Gartner in the report.

In accordance with Gartner, data security and privacy, in conjunction with the need to protect IT infrastructure from the ever-increasing rise in sophisticated and targeted attacks in Asia Pacific, were among the key drivers fuelling the growth of spending on IT security software. The consumer security and enterprise end-point protection remained the two largest sub-segments of the Asia Pacific security market in 2008, totaling $1.08 billion, the report maintained.

However, it was China that led the market in terms of security in 2008, followed by Australia and South Korea.

Cheung stated, “The region is vibrant and fast-growing, which is fostered by the need for modernization.” “Demand for IT security in emerging markets such as China is high, and even other small countries, such as Vietnam and Indonesia, are considered fast-emerging economies. Asia Pacific is viewed as a large long-term sustainable market, especially amid the global economic recession.”

Cheung credit China’s high growth to local security players, for instance Rising and Kingsoft, the heavy spending on Olympic Games in 2008 and the rapid increase in foreign investments.