Page 142 - Cyber Defense eMagazine June 2020 Edition
P. 142
defenses. One of the most-watched TED talks on the subject, it helped shape the global conversation
about the role of hackers and the evolution of cybersecurity in the information age.
In September, Elazari will deliver a keynote address during a General Session at Global Security
Exchange (GSX). This event brings together professionals from cyber, operational, and physical security
– three disciplines which have merged to become inseparable. In her session, Elazari will present the
hacker’s point of view in making a compelling case for why cybersecurity is now fundamental to our way
of life.
While hackers are typically thought of and depicted in the media as breaking into a network from a remote
location, in fact the reality is quite different. Today, very often a network breach begins with a physical
breach. Using social engineering, picking a lock, or otherwise breaking into a facility can be the fastest
and easiest way for a cyber criminal to get easy access to the network. Once inside, they can steal a
laptop or other device, or slip into a server room and simply plug in.
For this reason, physical security has become more important than ever before. While this discipline has
always been fundamental to protecting an organization and its people from workplace violence, theft,
vandalism, and other risk, now it is also a critical cybersecurity measure.
The opposite perspective is also true; a cyber breach can be the first step in engineering a physical break-
in. Using a vulnerable entry point – which in the IoT world could be a Wi-Fi camera or something as
esoteric as a smart fish tank or a gas pump – criminals can disarm alarm systems and electronic locks,
making it easy to walk into a facility and commit theft or other crimes. Worse, all these IoT devices can
be hijacked to become digital assets in wide-scale criminal activity.
ASIS International, who produces GSX, has been a pioneer in recognizing the merging of physical and
cybersecurity. Bringing speakers like Keren Elazari to the forefront each year has helped both physical
security professionals and cybersecurity experts better understand how neither can properly function
without the other. It is the responsibility of every citizen, consumer, and business owner to ensure that
correct security protocols are in place at all times. As every hacker knows, it takes only the slightest crack
in the cyber armor to enable a devastating attack. Read more details about Elazari’s GSX session as
well as other cybersecurity education and training available at GSX.org/CDM_Hacker.
Cyber Defense eMagazine –June 2020 Edition 142
Copyright © 2020, Cyber Defense Magazine. All rights reserved worldwide.