Just as many had forecast, we became this year even more reliant on cyber as we go about our daily lives. The same is true about all those that projected a record year when it comes to cyberthreats.\u00a0Many connected technologies advanced and became operational, increasing the number of potential cyber targets. They are rapidly being integrated into our personal and professional lives.\u00a0It truly is a target-rich environment.\u00a0
At a recent event, I asked how many people had a computer connected to the internet without a firewall and antivirus protection.\u00a0No one raised their hand.\u00a0I then asked how many of you have some other type of device (smartphone and tablet included) connected to the internet that did not have a firewall and antivirus protection. Approximately three-quarters of those attending raised their hands.\u00a0One individual justified their action by saying they needed to interact and be connected with work!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s face it: We have a lot of things to be thankful for when it comes to our current cyber capabilities just as we have a lot of things to be fearful about the cyber environment.\u00a0It looks like 2016 will be another record year for new strains of malware, just as it is likely to be a record year for sales of internet-connected devices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The challenge is striking the appropriate balance.\u00a0We know that there is no such thing when it comes to being 100 percent secure in cyberspace.\u00a0That said, something needs to change, and quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Have a happy Thanksgiving!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
We have a lot of things to be thankful for when it comes to our current cyber capabilities just as we have a lot of things to be fearful about the cyber environment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":25506,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":10,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[10,29,16,130,24,58],"tags":[],"coauthors":[858,888],"class_list":["post-28615","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cyber","category-home","category-it-networks","category-net-defense-blogs","category-opinion","category-the-compass"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"WC4ODX2OWVAUBLD6XRKECALXPQ","arc_canonical_url":"\/2016\/11\/21\/cyber-thankful-and-fearful\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"\n