Cyber Resilience: Definition, Elements & Strategy

What is cyber resilience?

Cyber resilience is the capability of a digital ecosystem to defend itself against, withstand, and recover from cybersecurity incidents. 

It is a necessary condition of the normal functioning of any organization. That is why it should be a part of business continuity management.

Key features:

Any digital system likens a living organism. It inhabits a constantly changing environment and undergoes multiple internal transformations.

It must be able to withstand extreme conditions. It should be able to adjust to wide-scale changes. It must be able to quickly restore itself from major disruptions. Finally, it should last for as long as possible.

Hence its successful features are:

• Defensibility
• Adaptability
• Recoverability
• Durability

Elements of cybersecurity resilience:

1. Analysis & Planning

This is necessary to assess the threats and introduce strategies for all types of cyber events.

2. Prevention & Monitoring

A system should possess the necessary instruments to avert cyber incidents. But since it’s impossible to prevent 100% of them, you need tools to monitor it. 

3. Detection & Response

Timely event spotting provides an opportunity for an early response and shorter downtime. It can save businesses from the serious consequences of cybercrimes. 

4. Recovery & Evolution

The ability to get back to normal as soon as possible is critical for business continuity management. What’s even more important is the ability to evolve the security system after the cyber event.

Some experts suggest other components:

• Manage & defend
• Identify & detect
• Respond & recover
• Govern & Assure

Or:

• Protect
• Detect
• Evolve

Why is cyber resilience important?

1. Strategic planning improves the following aspects:

• Defense;
• Response;
• Recovery.

2. Integration of cybersecurity and business continuity management enables to:

• Make sure that cybersecurity is in line with business goals and needs;
• Plan the recovery activities better;
• Decrease the duration of downtime as well as financial losses;
• Minimize the legal consequences of cyber incidents due to compliance;
• Lessen the damage to reputation.

Vectors of improvement:

1. Tools

• AI
• Disaster Recovery
• Data backup
• App management
• Cybersecurity automation

2. Processes

• Security analysis
• Employee cybersecurity training & enforcement of safe digital practices
• Making cyber resilience part of the business planning
• Regular system pen-testing

Cyber Resilience strategy

Stage 1: Plan

• Assess the cybersecurity of your digital system.
• Identify vulnerabilities and the ways to protect or remove them. 
• Estimate and prioritize the threats and risks. 
• Create prevention, monitoring, defense, response, and recovery strategies.
• Choose the tools

Stage 2: Build & test

Build a system that will constantly keep track and control your operations from a cybersecurity standpoint. Test the system for vulnerabilities.

Stage 3: Undergo cyber incidents

While it is impossible for any company to achieve perfect system resilience, cybersecurity events can offer valuable insights into their weaknesses.

Stage 4: Adapt

You need to analyze what went wrong and led to the incident. Then tweak your system.