It will come as no surprise that in this fast-evolving, technology-driven world – despite all the positive attempts and cyber security professionals’ big promises – we are getting more and more vulnerable. However, a more surprising fact is that some organizations are universally losing their digital confidence and resilience faster than others. In other words, small and mid-sized organisations are left behind.
Today, cyber criminals operate on an industrial-scale. This industrialization of cybercrime is propelled by reduced costs and increased profits, particularly through methods such as ransomware-as-a-service and supply chain attacks. Criminals and malicious actors can scan the entire Internet in a matter of hours against all known vulnerabilities, Further, our identities can be successfully targeted using more sophisticated methods, while AI is writing effective, evasive malware. With the help of industrialized methods and usage of technological advancements, these cyber criminals can find our digital exposures and vulnerabilities easier, faster and cheaper. And they do not discriminate who they are targeting, because there is no need.
The swift embrace of cloud computing, Internet of Things, automation, AI, remote work, and the widespread utilization of digitally-driven opportunities has expanded an organization’s digital attack surface. Proactively managing both the external attack surface and internal security posture has become both challenging and essential.
The current mid-market playbook is broken
The cyber security playbook for small- to mid-sized companies is broken, as it is built too much on the terms of well-resourced larger enterprises and their allies.
Playbooks with more and more products, controls, projects, and staff has made larger enterprises incrementally safer, but it has also added uncertainty, complexity and cost to smaller companies. The more is more myth is nurtured by big technology vendors and industry power holders with greater resources. It is good for their business but leaves small- to mid-sized organisations without feasible, viable, and affordable choices. Whether it relates to cyber defence, regulatory requirements or understanding the digital attack surface of the small- to mid-sized company, there is a gap. These companies are chronically overwhelmed, underresourced, and under-served.
Creating a new (and different) playbook for these organizations starts from asking the question: what security outcomes do we want to see? Only then can we work backwards to achieve the optimal result. How do we fill the gap? That’s where we step in.