Companies and Cyber-security to 2020: Synthesis of the Study by Futuribles International

Cyber-attacks, identity fraud, identity theft and computer hacking –recent news coverage has been full of examples showing the new ways that individuals and organizations are vulnerable as a result of their on-line activities and the technological tools they use. In the face of rapidly evolving cyber-risks, companies and public bodies have to be able to react in very short order to threats they haven’t necessarily anticipated and are often poorly prepared to meet. Taking the view that medium-range thinking on cybersecurity questions may teach us much that is useful about developing strategies to reduce risks of this type, and believing also that thinking of this kind must necessarily be based on a certain pooling of knowledge among the players concerned, Futuribles International launched a study in 2013-14 entitled “Companies and Cyber-security to 2020”. Nicolas Mazzucchi, its co-director, describes it in broad outline here and details some of the main recommendations arising out of it in terms of cyber-security strategy for companies and government bodies.