COMMENTARY: Today’s cyberthreat landscape continues to undergo change, with bad actors finding new ways to wreak havoc to consumers, businesses, and government agencies every day.
We are now at an inflection point in which the term cybersecurity no longer pertains to only protecting one’s data. Cybersecurity has become about resilience. While malware and ransomware mitigation strategies address the most immediate risks, the foundation of long-term security lies in cultivating a robust cyber posture. This approach emphasizes preparedness, response, and recovery, and it equips organizations to confidently face both predictable and unforeseen threats.
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Organizations must first look at the two categories of risk. Known threats, such as software vulnerabilities and common attack methods, are often anticipated and addressed with existing tools.
However, the real challenge lies in unknown threats, from zero-day vulnerabilities to advanced persistent threats that emerge suddenly and surprisingly. Addressing these risks requires more than firewalls and minimizing their impact. It takes resilience: the ability to withstand and recover from disruptions no matter how or when they occur. This shift in perspective transforms cybersecurity from a reactive process into a proactive and ongoing corporate strategy.
The need for cyber posture
An organization’s readiness to tackle the complex and always evolving threat landscape revolves around cyber posture. A strong posture reflects an organization’s commitment to comprehensive security, integrating three principles: preparedness, response, and recovery.
For preparedness, teams identify potential risks and implement measures to prevent them. Response requires them to act quickly with a plan to contain and minimize damage when incidents occur. Recovery ensures that business operations can quickly return to normal, even after the most severe disruptions. Together, these elements create a security approach that anticipates the risk and adapts to create a solution that works.
Unlike narrow strategies that address risks in isolation, a strong cyber posture embraces the interconnected nature of modern threats. It equips organizations to face challenges with all stakeholders involved, aligning security practices with the most pressing and current vulnerabilities while taking into account the likelihood of future unknown risk.
Practical steps toward cyber resilience
Strengthening the security posture to achieve resilience requires a strategic, structured process. Teams need to follow security frameworks such as CIS, NIST and ISO 27001, which offer blueprints for enhancing the posture. Building resilience requires deliberate and strategic efforts. The process begins with these five steps:
- Follow frameworks such as CIS, NIST, and ISO 27001: These frameworks are available to offer a blueprint for enhancing cybersecurity posture.
- Select a security framework: Select one that aligns with the organization’s objectives, operational needs, and risk environment to serve as the foundation of a resilience strategy.
- Conduct a business impact analysis: A BIA helps teams assess the potential impact of cyber incidents and prioritize protection efforts based on the criticality of assets and processes.
- Develop a comprehensive asset management procedure: With a procedure in place, it’s easier to identify, categorize, and protect hardware, software, data, and systems.
- Implement a risk register: The register gets used to document and evaluate risks, allowing for a systematic, proactive approach to mitigating vulnerabilities and addressing evolving threats.
By integrating these steps—selecting a tailored framework, conducting a BIA, managing assets, and maintaining a risk register— teams can create a solid foundation for cyber resilience. These measures strengthen an organization’s security posture, and also enhance its ability to adapt to, withstand, and recover from both known and unforeseen cyber challenges
Established frameworks offer invaluable guidance in building resilience. For example, the NIST Cybersecurity Framework lets security pros identify, protect, detect, respond, and recover from incidents. Similarly, the CIS Controls present actionable steps for securing systems and data, while ISO 27001 delivers a comprehensive methodology for managing information security.
These frameworks serve as blueprints for resilience, but their true value lies in customization. Every organization faces unique challenges and aligning a framework to specific needs ensures that resources are deployed where they will have the greatest impact. Rather than viewing compliance as the ultimate goal, organizations should treat these frameworks as tools for building a security-first mindset.
True resilience extends beyond technologies and strategies. It’s a mindset, a holistic commitment to security that evolves with the threat landscape. By identifying risks, analyzing potential impacts, and aligning efforts with tailored frameworks, organizations can move beyond the traditional focus on mitigation. They can instead embrace a proactive approach that ensures not only survival but long-term success.
In a world where cyber threats are constant and increasingly sophisticated, resilience shows us the path forward. Organizations of every size should adopt this state of mind. Today there are tools and technologies that let every company reach optimal cyber resilience regardless to its size and resources.
Building resilience today lays the groundwork for thriving in the digital age, where organizations must view cybersecurity as a flexible and evolving competitive advantage, as opposed to a constant challenge and cost center.
David Primor, founder and CEO, Cynomi
SC Media Perspectives columns are written by a trusted community of SC Media cybersecurity subject matter experts. Each contribution has a goal of bringing a unique voice to important cybersecurity topics. Content strives to be of the highest quality, objective and non-commercial.
