Adrian Johnson
TLDR:
- Cyber resilience, the ability to continue operating safely, effectively, and economically despite cyber attacks, is crucial in addition to cybersecurity.
- Cyber attacks are inevitable, and organizations need to focus on building resilience to handle and recover from attacks.
- The costs of downtime after an attack are significant, and building cyber resilience can reduce these costs.
- Cyber resilience also prepares organizations for other disruptions, such as natural disasters and human errors.
Cybersecurity is focused on preventing cyber attacks by implementing measures such as firewalls, antivirus software, and strong passwords. However, it is impossible to prevent all cyber attacks, and this is where cyber resilience becomes important. Cyber resilience refers to an organization’s ability to continue operating safely, effectively, and economically despite disruptions caused by cyber attacks.
One of the key reasons why cyber resilience is more important than just cybersecurity is the inevitability of cyber attacks. No matter how strong an organization’s cyber defenses are, it is impossible to prevent all attacks, considering the widespread networks and the sophistication of hackers. Even big tech companies with significant cybersecurity budgets have suffered major breaches.
In addition to the inevitability of attacks, the costs of downtime after an attack can be huge. Cyber attacks can cripple operations for days, causing significant economic losses. For example, when Maersk’s systems were hit by the NotPetya ransomware in 2017, it paralyzed the company’s 76 port terminals, resulting in over $300 million in losses. Building cyber resilience through measures like backup systems and contingency plans can significantly reduce downtime and costs when attacks occur.
Cyber resilience also prepares organizations for other disruptions beyond cyber attacks. It is useful in mitigating the impact of server outages caused by natural disasters, human errors, hardware failures, accidental deletions, or configuration changes. By investing in cyber resilience, organizations can gain broad protection against various types of disruptions.
Some examples of cyber resilience protections include:
- Regular offline backups to easily restore data
- Maintaining redundancy in systems to ensure continued operations
- Implementing incident response plans to minimize the impact of attacks
- Regular testing and updating of systems and processes
- Educating employees on cybersecurity best practices
In conclusion, while cybersecurity is essential, cyber resilience is equally important. Organizations need to recognize the inevitability of cyber attacks and focus on building resilience to handle and recover from these attacks. The costs of downtime after an attack can be significant, and cyber resilience measures can reduce these costs. Furthermore, cyber resilience prepares organizations for other disruptions and provides broad protection against various risks. Investing in cyber resilience is crucial in today’s digital landscape.
