December 10, 2016
The stakes of the data breach crisis have been enormous this year and make prospects bleak for 2017 and beyond.
Global cybercrime will double to a projected $6 trillion in $2021, from $3 trillion in 2015, according to Cybersecurity Ventures — costs that are either directly absorbed by consumers or represent vast expenditures that could have been spent more beneficially for their investors.
The breach at Yahoo Inc. YHOO, +1.02% affected at least 500 million user accounts worldwide, or over 50% more than the U.S. population. It could result in the company losing $1 billion from its acquisition price, or putting the transaction with Verizon Communications Inc. VZ, +0.80% in jeopardy.
To make security great again, we must augment the best preventive security with detection capabilities that can catch an attacker red-handed at an early stage, before damage can occur. This is a departure from the conventional “Cold War” security mindset that is concerned with keeping attackers out by building taller and thicker walls. It involves assuming that attackers will break into the network and become active — the most common breach scenario of 2016 — and shifting strategy, tools and staffing as a result.