Cyberattacks cost companies an estimated half a trillion dollars in damages every year. The main reason they can harm companies to such a staggering degree is that today’s cybersecurity systems use centralized monitoring, with little beyond their main firewalls to protect the rest of an organization. As a result, when companies are hacked, it can take days for information technology teams to isolate infected systems, remove malicious code, and restore business continuity. By the time they identify, assess, and resolve the incident, the malicious code has usually proliferated, almost without limit, across any connected or even tangentially related systems, giving hackers even more time to access sensitive data and to cause malfunctions.
Limit Cyberattacks with a System-Wide Safe Mode
Protect critical equipment during a breach.
May 17, 2017
Summary.
To stay ahead of hackers’ new techniques of intrusion, companies need to adopt decentralized cybersecurity architectures armed with intelligent mechanisms that will either automatically disconnect from a breached system — or default to a “safe mode” that will enable them to operate at a reduced level until the effects of cyberattacks can be contained and corrected. Like the general security systems at high-risk sites such as nuclear power plants, companies require multiple layers of redundant safety mechanisms and cybernetic control systems. The goal should be to create “air pockets” with neither direct nor indirect internet connections that can protect critical equipment and internet-connected devices.
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Accelerate your career with Harvard ManageMentor®. HBR Learning’s online leadership training helps you hone your skills with courses like Digital Intelligence . Earn badges to share on LinkedIn and your resume. Access more than 40 courses trusted by Fortune 500 companies.
Excel in a world that's being continually transformed by technology.