A sponsored feature examines why security has become the top priority when choosing videoconferencing and meeting-room technology, as hybrid working expands the potential attack surface and regulators tighten requirements. Citing IDC research and comments from Barco ClickShare's marketing director, Yannic Laleeuwe, the article argues that collaboration tools have become "mission-critical business systems" handling sensitive corporate data, meaning security can no longer be an afterthought but must be designed in without undermining usability.

According to IDC, organisations now rank security as their most important purchase criterion (31 percent), ahead of price (26 percent) and quality (25 percent). Top concerns include exposure to cyberattacks and malware (47 percent), devices falling out of compliance through missed patches (39 percent), and risky employee behaviour causing data exposure (37 percent). The piece also highlights how decentralised IT management can fragment security controls, and notes growing regulatory pressure in Europe, including the EU's NIS2 Directive, which imposes strict risk management and incident-reporting obligations on medium-to-large organisations.