It’s Not the Bite, It’s the Blind Spot
- Efrem Borg
- Jul 19
- 4 min read
The reality of cyberattacks is no longer a distant possibility, it’s a constant and evolving threat. Ransomware, phishing, data breaches, and denial-of-service attacks now affect organisations of every size and sector. In this landscape, the difference between those who endure and those who fall is no longer just the ability to recover, it’s the ability to resist.
This is where cyber resilience comes in.
Beyond Backups: The Evolution of Cyber Preparedness
Traditionally, business continuity plans and off-site backups were seen as sufficient safeguards. But today’s threat landscape demands much more. Resilience is about being able to anticipate, withstand, and adapt to attacks, not just bounce back from them.
A resilient organisation doesn’t rely solely on technology or hope. It relies on strategy, culture, and readiness. This means:
Knowing your assets and critical systems.
Continuously assessing risk exposure.
Implementing strong identity and access controls.
Detecting anomalies in real time.
Training staff to respond with confidence, not confusion.
The Cybercriminal Playbook is Evolving
Modern ransomware actors are shifting from encryption to extortion. They don’t just lock data; they steal it and threaten to expose it. They target gaps in human behaviour, supply chains, and unmanaged devices. The attack is rarely where you’re looking, it’s often where you’re not.
That’s why resilience requires more than patching systems or running antivirus. It’s about building adaptive defence capabilities and continuously validating your preparedness.
Where to Start
If you’re unsure where your organisation stands, a cyber resilience review can offer a rapid assessment of your current state and priorities. The key pillars to build upon include:
Governance: Clear Ownership and Accountability
Effective cyber resilience starts with clarity on who is responsible for what. Governance is not simply about having a cybersecurity policy on paper — it's about ensuring leadership actively supports it, and that responsibilities are clearly assigned across the organisation.
This includes:
Defining roles for executive sponsors, IT teams, and business unit leaders.
Establishing risk ownership, ensuring each department understands how cybersecurity impacts their operations.
Embedding cyber resilience into broader corporate governance, risk, and compliance frameworks.
Monitoring and reporting regularly to leadership, with clear KPIs tied to resilience goals.
Without ownership, even the best plans remain theoretical. Governance ensures accountability, visibility, and momentum.
Technology: Appropriate Tools Aligned with Actual Needs
The cybersecurity market is flooded with tools, but more doesn’t mean better. For SMBs, the focus should be on having the right technologies, deployed intelligently. This means:
Prioritising visibility into your digital environment, knowing what’s running, where, and why.
Securing the basics first: endpoint protection, access controls, secure configurations, and patching hygiene.
Selecting tools that are fit for purpose, interoperable, and scalable to your business.
Avoiding tool fatigue by consolidating solutions where possible to reduce complexity.
Technology should be a force multiplier, not a drain on resources or an illusion of safety.
Process: Well-Documented Response and Recovery Procedures
The best time to write an incident response plan isn’t during an incident. Having clear, tested processes ensures that your team can act quickly and confidently under pressure. Key elements include:
Incident response plans that are realistic, role-based, and adaptable.
Communication protocols, including how and when to notify internal teams, customers, and authorities.
Disaster recovery and business continuity procedures that reflect your current infrastructure and data dependencies.
Playbooks for likely scenarios (e.g., ransomware, credential compromise, supply chain breach).
Documentation brings discipline. Processes ensure that recovery isn’t left to improvisation.
People: Ongoing Awareness and Role-Based Training
Humans remain the most common point of failure and your greatest untapped defence. Cyber resilience demands a culture of security awareness, from the front desk to the boardroom. This includes:
Regular, engaging training for all staff, focused on real-world threats like phishing, social engineering, and data handling.
Role-specific training for IT teams, executives, and high-risk roles (e.g., finance, HR).
Creating a safe environment for reporting suspicious behaviour or mistakes without fear of blame.
Embedding security into onboarding, performance reviews, and team objectives.
Security-conscious staff can prevent incidents before they occur — but only if they’re informed and empowered.
Testing: Frequent Incident Simulations and Tabletop Exercises
A plan that hasn’t been tested is a plan that won’t work. Testing validates assumptions, uncovers gaps, and builds muscle memory across teams. Effective testing includes:
Tabletop exercises to walk through response scenarios in a controlled setting, involving both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Live simulations (e.g., phishing campaigns, red team/blue team drills) to stress-test detection and response capabilities.
Post-incident reviews and lessons learned to continuously improve procedures.
Metrics and debriefs to assess readiness and refine playbooks.
Testing isn't about passing or failing, it's about evolving. It ensures you're ready when resilience truly matters.
Security is NOT a One-Time Fix
Cyberattacks rarely strike where you're watching. The breach that brings you down often exploits a gap you never considered, an overlooked asset, an untrained employee, a forgotten system. That’s why true resilience isn’t built on reacting to what’s visible, but on anticipating what isn’t.
By shifting focus from recovery to readiness, from products to strategy, and from fear to action, organisations can reduce risk without adding unnecessary complexity. At UnDisrupted, we help you find and close those blind spots, before they bite.
Join the Conversation
We’d love to hear your thoughts, how are you ensuring cyber resilient operations through the strengthening of your cyber security pillars? Share your experiences in the comments below or connect with us directly.
For more insights on building resilience, evolving your cybersecurity strategy, and navigating today’s regulatory landscape, explore our blog at unDisrupted.net, or follow us on LinkedIn. 📖
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