Security is one of the basic principles of human existence and a key driver of societal balance. Several postulates on human needs, including the famed Maslow’s hierarchy psychological concept, rank safety (defined as security of environment, employment, resources, health, property) as a core human requirement. This has been true of the industrial world as well for a long time. Industrial espionage, a practice which has been around for a while now, is testament to the need for protecting enterprise intellectual property and business confidential data.

Industry 4.0 is characterized by the concepts of digital revolution. The emergence of cloud computing as a viable business enabler and transformative ideas such as the metaverse are driving this revolution. But with this global connectivity comes the risk of a new era of industrial espionage – the type that exists in cyberspace. Therefore, for all the good that technological advancements are bringing about, it is critical to address the risk of potential threats posed by cybersecurity concerns.

Cyberspace concepts are not new. They have been around since the 1960s. In its earliest avatar, the main threat to networked computing ecosystems was that of physical sabotage. This was replaced from the next decade onwards by the “creeper-reaper rivalry”. The self-operating and replicating nature of creeper and the detect-eliminate mechanism of reaper foreshadowed modern malware and cybersecurity. As the internet has increasingly become ubiquitous, so has the sophistication and spread of cybercrime. Thankfully, so has cybersecurity.

According to industry estimates, cybercrime will cost the world nearly 10.5 trillion dollars annually by 2025 . In 2022, cyberattacks occurred almost once every 39 seconds. In the age of the business of big data, cybersecurity has moved from IT departments to the boardrooms of most organizations. However, with the high volume of devices connected to the IoT, cybercrime is no longer a matter of information safety only. Anyone with a phone in their hand may be at personal and financial risk.

Cybersecurity is no longer a matter of keeping businesses and data safe. In an age where the human-machine interface grows exceedingly personal, cyber threats are a matter of safeguarding lives. With its expanse, cybercrime has moved beyond the question of ‘will it happen’ to ‘when will it occur’. The detect and eliminate models of cybersecurity need to shift to risk management in this era.

With cybercrime becoming highly sophisticated, we are using advanced techniques, including the use of AI to perform behavioral analysis to understand the patterns and nature of the attackers, as counterpoints. However, at the heart of smart cybersecurity is a smart user – educating people to identify the role they can play in cybersecurity and ensuring that they use all the tools available at their disposal can be a great asset in the fight against cybercrime.

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