Popular culture has always enjoyed speculating about the impending doom of the human race at the behest of a computerised overlord. So great is the number of films portraying this plot it makes its own category and armies of books are published each year explaining the mystery of our mechanical friends. Despite the best efforts of Hollywood or engagement hungry tabloids, it does not seem that we will be slaves to some data scrambling, algorithm digesting robot army. However, there is a growing concern surrounding the growth in our dependence on digitalisation and the risk this poses to business, national security and individual data. The threats are growing and evolving with the times. Additionally, with the advent of covid, we have all experienced how dependent we are on computers and the demand for greater digitalisation in our economy is accelerating at cosmic speeds. For instance, our personal devises now harvest vast amounts of our personal data, our markets run trillions of US Dollars in transactions through computers each day and everything from military drones and national healthcare systems are operating on digital networks. Therefore, in so many ways, we are inexplicably integrated to our digital infrastructure.
The technological and innovative feats brought about by the computer is outstanding. It is responsible for the hyper-globalised world we live in; it has allowed for life changing scientific breakthroughs and the creation of huge industries out of nowhere. It is ultimately a force for good. Yet there is a darker more worrying trend to digitalisation. As a result of the huge levels of societal activity and dependence on computers, it has attracted a growing trade of Malware, Ransomware, data breeches to name a few. On that note, these threats are only increasing and becoming more intelligent. The last decade has seen growth in advanced persistent threats (APT’s) which have been able to sabotage business, disrupt public services and expose our private data. Cybersecurity is becoming a major point of focus for national security across the world, as more nations are willing to use cyber-attacks to disrupt a nation’s critical infrastructure. On that note, this year 68% medium businesses, 75% large business and 57% of high-income charities have experienced cyber security breaches or attacks in the UK . Consequently, business supply chains are at risk to disruption, critical data could be exposed, and the health of financial positions are at risk. Therefore, one of the biggest threats over the next few decades will be our vulnerability to cyber-security breaches and cyber-attacks which look to pray on firms with weak cyber-security protocols and defences. In response, it is really important for business and individuals, to protect their data and network with firewalls and other effective solutions.
The need to diversify risk and reduce vulnerability is a natural desire for business and individuals. As mentioned before, there is a huge amount of opportunity driven by greater digitalisation and due to this it’s important for all types of business to place themselves in the strongest position possible. The desire for network protection is growing and servicing this desire is some really cutting-edge innovations in cyber-security. Palo Alto are providing vital innovations in order to protect business networks through their cutting-edge intelligent network security. Furthermore, companies like F5 networks have made great leaps in providing multi angle cyber-solutions, thus allowing for secure traffic management and for a safe transition to greater automation and cloud security. The cyber-security industry is marching a strong agender through research and development and will be critical for allowing society to benefit from a more digitalised economy.
Ultimately, we are on the verge of a great leap forwards to a strong future, with the admission of 5G infrastructure, nanotechnology and automation. Just like previous revolution in the organisation of production, this will disrupt industries but in doing so will unshackle the barriers to development, innovation and allow for earthshattering inventions. Therefore, we need strong network protections, allowing for all aspects of our society to navigate safely through the turbulent waters of a cyber-security.