Page 149 - Cyber Defense eMagazine April 2023

Risk: Everything Everywhere All at Once

It’s Time to Get Proactive About Risk Reduction

By Marc Gaffan, CEO of IONIX

The first quarter of 2023 is being dominated by a singular theme, re-thinking risk. We came into the year
facing the most anticipated recession of all time. The Federal Reserve is hiking rates at a furious pace.
This is having its intended impact on the economy, particularly on the housing market. “Don’t Fight The
Fed” was the rallying cry of Wall Street strategists. Instead, the market took off like a rocket in January.
By the end of the month, the Bears were getting weak, and many were giving in. Fear of missing out
(“FOMO”) is a powerful thing.
A few weeks later the gains are gone. Investors are again rethinking their strategies for the rest of the
year. Are we headed for a rebound or another leg down? What’s the bigger risk, missing the rally or
fighting the Fed?

In the technology sector, a seismic change in the nature of risk took place in early March, when The
National Cybersecurity Strategy ("NCS") was released. Its top priority was to, “rebalance the responsibility
to defend cyberspace by shifting the burden for cybersecurity away from individuals, small businesses,
and local governments, and onto the organizations that are most capable and best-positioned to reduce
risks for all of us.”

So, what does that mean for practitioners? According to the Strategy, “Shifting liability for software
products and services to promote secure development practices.” That’s right. If you develop software or

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