Climb every mountain

A CISO or any security leader must base actions on reality. This means no rose-tinted glasses, but at the same time pessimism can be equally destructive, scaremongering is not helpful. 

But make no mistake cyber warfare is serious, and we have many statistics that quantify the financial cost. Not to mention the deluge of breaches that occur every second and the gigabytes of sensitive data that has proliferated the dark web. Tragically the human cost can be even more, some have lost their livelihood at the drop of a hat, and others even more. This month’s security blog is to remind us of the indomitable human spirit! Throughout our history we have shown adaptability that has allowed us to thrive. And we have a proven history of conquering hostile environments.  Whether deep in the jungle, out in the dessert, or down in the depths of the ocean we have not been found wanting. In polar ice or on the highest mountain, lack of oxygen and extreme cold has not put a halt to our endeavours.  The cyber war is fierce, but adversity is a teacher and leads us to truth¹. And the truth is in what may be one of the greatest achievements for mankind in 1969 we put a man on the moon. Here is a snapshot of just a few of our achievements and some of our pioneers: 

• 1969 put a man on the moon – Neil Armstrong 
• 1975 Mount Everest Southwest Face expedition – Sir Chris Bonington
  8,760 meters
  Over 24 tonnes of equipment including supplementary oxygen
  -50°C at night 
• 2019 Molloy Deep in Artic Ocean – Victor Vescovo
  5,550 meters below sea level
  The 5th dive in a series of dives in the world’s deepest oceans 

How did we achieve such heights? One thing for sure is that we learnt from and built on those that went before us. Sir Chris Bonington and his team certainly profited from the Japanese expedition of 1970. And in the same way we profit from those who have gone before us. In 1973 a great book² was authored by James Martin and it contains jewels of information and principles that are still valid today. Forewarned is forearmed and we have some much to equip us for the battle. So let us do our homework, educate ourselves, and our collaborators. If you know where to look you just may find out that someone already out thought the competition. And even climbed the highest mountain. My closing words: “We will fight, and we will win!” ³

¹ Adversity is the first path to truth. – Lord Byron 

² Security, Accuracy and Privacy in Computer Systems. – James Martin 

³ The original quote is “They’ll keep fighting, and they’ll win!” –  Starship Troopers (film)