3 things every senior executive must understand about cyber security — including how Continuous Controls Monitoring (CCM) is the new de facto for easing cyber pain
When Gartner named ”cybersecurity control failures” top of the list of executive concerns in its global Emerging Risks Monitor Report, was anyone really surprised? Business executives probably just experienced another cold shiver down the spine.
Executives and businesses have been feeling the pain of cyber security risk for a very long time. And it just seems to get worse with every passing year: increasing sophistication from cyber criminals; a higher volume and a greater variety of cyber threats; bigger penalties and potential business losses; seemingly never-ending compliance and audit challenges. And, since 2020, the added burden of the pandemic-driven increase in remote working and remote access to business systems.
Fortunately it’s not all doom and gloom. Quite the opposite, in fact, for those up to speed with what’s happening in the world of cyber security, information security, infosec, digital risk… call it what you will.
So what are the three things every executive must understand about cyber security? And why the cautious optimism?
1. Cyber security has moved on
Very quickly, cyber security has entered a much more advanced and mature phase with the advent of Continuous Controls Monitoring, or CCM as it is often called by the relatively few who currently know of its existence.
CCM means that cyber security no longer needs be ‘managed’ through a patchwork of largely manual, resource- and money-sapping activities and periodic audits. At worst, this traditional approach can be likened to a team of people scrambling around trying to reinforce a dam containing multiple points of weakness and vulnerability. It’s time-consuming, costly, and often hit and miss.
By contrast, Continuous Controls Monitoring, or CCM, puts in place automated and highly visible monitoring and auditing of the security controls within your business. It’s ‘always-on’, so it’s there 24/7, forever working in the background. Also—and this is key—it’s visible on a user-friendly visual dashboard that can be available on a ‘need to know’ basis across the business, including at board level.
And when implemented by Quod Orbis, one of the few true CCM specialists in the market, this new cyber security solution continuously reduces your cyber risk, maximises protection and slashes effort and costs—and all while minimising the potential for loss of trading, reputation, revenue and profit.
2. Most of the market is going to be playing catch-up (but they don’t know it yet)
Amazingly, hardly anybody who should have heard about Continuous Controls Monitoring has actually heard about it.
A few of the very big names (in banking, for example) are doing it already and reaping the benefits. But CCM isn’t just for massive corporations; it’s now available to all and is an especially good fit for organisations who take a mature approach to cyber security and often have challenging compliance requirements.
Yet based on conversations we have every day with medium-sized and large organisations, we estimate that only 1 in 10 people who are decision-makers or influencers in cyber security have heard of Continuous Controls Monitoring.
Gartner, though, has already recognised Continuous Controls Monitoring as an emerging governance, risk and compliance technology with its own product category, a benefits rating of ‘high’ and reaching a peak in the next 5–10 years. In other words, CCM is seen by industry experts and analysts as pretty much essential for large(ish), heavily regulated organisations.
3. Those who do know where cyber security is heading are taking things very seriously indeed
First, set aside any notion that this is a technical issue, because it’s not. It’s a business issue and the experts here at Quod Orbis will happily explain everything clearly and simply using the language of business, not technical jargon.
The language of business is vital, because cyber security and CCM are set to hit the boardroom in a big way. Back to Gartner…
Gartner predicts 40% of boards (up from 10% at January 2021) will have a “dedicated Cybersecurity Committee, overseen by a qualified board member”, by 2025.
The reasons given by Gartner for this increased boardroom focus?
Greater risk created by the expanded digital footprint of organisations during the Covid pandemic.
Because cybersecurity-related risk is rated as the second-highest source of risk for the enterprise after regulatory compliance risk.
And because “relatively few directors feel confident that their company is properly secured against a cyber attack”.
So how can you get up to speed, and quickly
If you want to build the necessary confidence in your cyber security systems—including learning more about these game-changing developments in cyber security—we’d be delighted to help.
To arrange a meeting, and to see a demo of the Quod Orbis Continuous Controls Monitoring solution, simply contact us now or call Alastair Dickson at Quod Orbis on +44 (0)7939 286 006
