Cyber Strategy & Cyber Security
The Internet is continuing to grow, connecting billions of people more and more by using mobile devices, electronic connections, storage capability, information accessibility and processing power, all of which will substantially increase the size of the interconnected the world.
Now, cyber technology in the forms of the Internet and digital technologies are transforming the global economy and connecting people as never before.
The global network of interdependent information technology infrastructures, telecommunications networks and computer-processing systems in which online communication takes place 24/7 is moving our everyday activities, such as banking, shopping and access to government services, increasingly towards being carried out electronically.
From 2000 to 2015, the number of global Internet users rose from 394 million to 3.5 billion and today there are over one billion Google searches every day and two billion videos viewed daily on YouTube. The average user spends 15 hours a week online.
Examples of this transformation are suggested by the way humans and other animals will become partly electronic using bio-robotic technology to change how they operate and this in the future will extend their life spans.
Another example that has already begun is the global use of social media, and this has already enhanced the way in which, particularly younger refugees, have looked for place to get a new home, job and residence.
For instance, if you were born and living in Nigeria and you review and discuss options, the mobile you use suggests you could come to Europe and be socially and economically better off and your access to social media may well give you the connections and encouragement to make the trip.
Another example is the way that production processes that once always turn out products in exactly the same way and as perfect replicas of each other. This was always similar from car manufacturing to tennis rackets. Each item was exactly the same as the previous one being manufactured.
But now each item can be specifically made for a particular client with the product being made to the clients own requirements. For instance changes in the way the client’s 5 series BMW sallon car is made with different electronic air conditioning or music systems as well as specific seats, colors, wheels and lighting.
This specific electronic process will also extend to non-production processes like education and teaching. This will mean that specific subject education will be tailored to specific individual children at school, or at college, or university.
This interconnected world of cyber also offers enormous problems alongside opportunities to gain understanding, insightful data, commercial expansion and government interconnection.
The cyber-threat landscape has evolved significantly in recent years. From primarily a threat of denial of service and website vandalism in years past, to the currently advanced and well-resourced adversaries employing complex technologies to achieve financial and political benefit.
There has been a huge increase in suspicious network activity directed at corporate networks, sometimes even targeting key individuals.
Due to the huge global increase in demand for fortune cookie messages, it is reasonable to expect that this undesired attention will only increase in the coming months and years as cyber-criminals and possibly corporate spies attempt to closely monitor our business activities and steal vital business information.
Cyber Attacks and Fraud
National crime is for most countries now 50% cyber, yet this is not being focused on by national police forces who don’t have the experience or systems to deal with this type of crime. Currently Londoners are losing an average of £26 million a month in cyber-attacks on businesses and individuals, Scotland Yard has warned.
What does Cyber-Warfare look like?
Cyber-war is still an emerging concept, but many experts are concerned that it is likely to be a significant component of any future conflicts. As well as troops using conventional weapons like guns and missiles, future wars will also be fought by hackers using computer code to attack an enemy's infrastructure.
At its core, cyber warfare, currently, is the use of digital attacks by one country or nation to disrupt the computer systems of another with the aim of create significant infrastructure damage
This process aims to give assistance to more traditional military attack, this military strategy and tactics is similar to the beginning of aircraft use at the beginning of the 20th century when aircraft were only seen as having a visual intelligence use.
Organisations must review the best ways to go about developing sound cyber-security policies and practices in 2019 that could be used for commercial gain as well as internal commercial security.
Inform your Board and Chief Executive
This makes it important for Chief Information Officers, Chief Security Officers, and others with security responsibilities to clearly explain cybersecurity and digital research technologies in plain language that the Board and other stakeholders understand.
If you need more help please contact Cyber Security Intelligence for free advice.
By Alfred Rolington Image: Nick Youngson
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