Managing Cyber Risk in an Evolving Risk Landscape

The majority of individuals associate cyber risk with the possible harm stemming from a company's IT and communication systems. This limited perspective arises as businesses predominantly disclose instances of data breaches and cyberattacks resulting from failures within their information technology infrastructure.

Nevertheless, the concept of cyber hazards extends further. A cyber breach has the potential to induce turmoil within a company, harm its reputation, pilfer intellectual property, and result in productivity setbacks. Each of these is categorized as significant cyber risks. Such risks carry the potential to compromise the organization's operational functionality, thereby impacting its overall business continuity.

Hence, businesses need to adopt a more extensive strategy to handle cyber risks. This strategy should primarily aim at achieving a comprehensive understanding of an organization's overall cyber risk status, including risks originating from external parties, in a real-time manner. The ability to assess, prioritize, and effectively communicate these risks to the Board is crucial in approaching risk management from a holistic perspective. Nonetheless, this is no simple task.

Numerous enterprises have acknowledged the significance of handling cyber peril and have already enhanced its importance by dedicating more resources to combat digital threats. According to a survey on risk perception conducted in 2019, approximately 79% of businesses ranked cyber risk as one of their top five concerns. However, what obstacles are hindering companies from efficiently managing cyber risk?

The rapid advancement of digital transformation is broadening the areas that can be targeted for attacks, making it difficult to anticipate the complicated risk landscape. Embracing contemporary technologies and approaches such as collaborating with external vendors, facilitating remote connections, utilizing mobile services, and contracting external services all heighten the vulnerability to risks.

Therefore, even though leaders acknowledge the necessity, they continue to face difficulties in obtaining a clear view and reaching data, assessing the potential consequences, and most notably conveying the information to the Board. Now, let us examine the main obstacles that businesses encounter when it comes to handling cyber risk.

Absence of risk perception: CISOs and security teams assigned with safeguarding their IT resources against ransomware and phishing assaults lack the necessary tools to obtain a comprehensive, cohesive outlook on potential dangers and patterns. This deficiency hampers business leaders' ability to promptly address arising risks. A cyber threat stemming from an unintentional breach by a third-party supplier or an external partner has the potential to create havoc throughout the supply chain, detrimentally impacting the business.

Companies require effective threat intelligence solutions in order to protect their organization from malicious individuals. They require access to solutions that can detect all new threats and offer a clearer understanding of the risks that are pertinent to their business. Continuous Control Monitoring (CCM) is a collection of automated technologies that continuously test and monitor both systems and business operations. This technology assists professionals in assessing security controls, spotting weaknesses, and resolving problems proactively.

Measuring and ranking cyber danger: Companies often face difficulties in ranking cyber threats as they lack the necessary resources to measure the level of risk. Business executives are unable to determine which risks are more important without quantifying the level of risk. Nevertheless, by utilizing appropriate resources and remedies, companies can evaluate the financial implications of cyber risk.

Leaders can make use of this data to prioritize dangers and expenditures by measuring the real financial consequences of the risks. Measuring the amount of cyber risk enables companies to grasp where they should allocate resources and determine the sufficient level of investment.

Quantifying risks is essential for decision-makers to anticipate potential problems and establish strong security measures. By utilizing this information, business executives can determine actions that enhance their ability to withstand challenges and improve overall performance. When assessing the impact of cyber risks, it is practical to employ techniques and tools that communicate these risks in a straightforward and comprehensible manner, specifically in terms of the operational disruptions the organization is financially willing to tolerate.

Failure to adequately handle cloud risks and advanced ransomware: As more companies transfer sensitive information to the cloud, security teams must guarantee the implementation of proper configuration and security measures to avoid potential data breaches. On occasion, incident response teams may lack the requisite expertise and resources to conduct thorough investigations into cloud-related data, which exposes the business to potential risks arising from the cloud.

Having a solid plan for cloud security, a thorough comprehension of the security measures employed by cloud providers, and investment in appropriate platforms to automate security procedures are key factors in effectively handling the risks associated with cloud computing. Continuous control monitoring (CCM), for instance, allows organizations to actively detect weaknesses, enhance cloud security and compliance, and minimize expenses related to auditing by automating the testing and monitoring of cloud security measures.

Conveying the seriousness of cyber risk to top-level executives can be challenging for Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs). It is crucial for security leaders to effectively communicate the importance of investing in cybersecurity measures to both the board and other high-ranking executives. Unfortunately, not all members of the board are knowledgeable about the intricate technicalities of cyber risk. If CISOs fail to effectively convey and quantify their cyber risk strategies, the board may not allocate the necessary resources to vital projects, leaving businesses vulnerable to data breaches. Consequently, businesses require solutions that greatly enhance CISOs' ability to provide clear, efficient, and systematic reports to the board.

Dealing with cyber risk in the ever-changing world of risks is difficult and demanding. Cyber dangers don't just exist on their own. With the growing presence of mobile devices and the Internet of Things (IoT), the number of entry points for hackers has increased. To illustrate, hackers can take advantage of data collected through web scraping and utilize it to launch successful phishing attacks. Even one breach can lead to a chain reaction of risks, causing serious consequences.

The contemporary strategy for handling risk involves cyber risk leaders comprehending the interconnected network of risks and the widespread effects they can cause. To achieve this, companies should allocate resources to acquire specialized software solutions that address cyber risks and adhere to recognized security protocols such as ISO 27001, NIST CSF, and NIST SP800-53. By doing so, CISOs, risk experts, and security teams can establish a sophisticated cyber risk program that aligns with the most effective methods and frameworks in the industry. This, in turn, enhances their organization's overall cyber governance, risk management, and compliance position.