Editor’s Note: Digitally bringing back the moat

Digitally bringing back the moat

Sarah Wright | Editor Technology has made life easier, improving collaboration, furthering transparency, providing new and varied ways to connect with neighbors and, perhaps most importantly, providing endless hours of cute cat videos. Hey, studies show that cats reduce stress and anxiety in their owners! But in all seriousness, the cloud has vastly improved work life for many workers around the world and, for some, kept the workforce turning during COVID.

However, all that ease and connectivity comes with its own complications. It can serve as a double-edged sword since the world harbors plenty of nefarious players who are interested in making a few quick bucks with other’s data. Ransomware routinely hits the headlines and costs those who fall prey to it a hefty fee in not only coin, but in time and peace of mind. Ransomware is just one way these individuals strike; sometimes, they parade as trusted parties in an email involving an infrastructure project — their emails so close to the official vendor, but not quite. Or sometimes, they have been able to insert themselves into email threads to pose as a vendor.

Municipalities around the world had fallen prey to these organized cybercriminals. In September, Eagle Mountain City, Utah, lost $1.13 million to such an email impersonation scheme, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. In a press release, the city noted it had strengthened its financial policies and implemented an added layer of accountability for city staff when completing financial transactions.

Individuals, municipalities and companies alike can benefit from taking similar steps. In this month’s lead article by Staci Reafsnyder, Frank Welder, a technical solutions architect in cybersecurity with Arrow Electronics, says it best: “I always think of cybersecurity as building defenses. We think of a castle. A castle is not just an individual structure. There’s the castle itself, and then there’s walls around that, and walls around that, and walls around that, and then a moat and maybe an open field.”

Ensuring staff are educated on cybersecurity topics is one key part of the defending your castle. As I currently take monthly cybersecurity training, I can’t recommend enough getting your departments on board, especially since not everyone is as tuned in to digital safety.

While technology has its dark corners, the bright spots can’t be forgotten. Nicholette Carlson is spotlighting Bellevue, Wash.’s, use of technology to save lives from traffic accidents. Other topics include

Dighton, Mass.’s, use of a grant to improve public safety through the installation of fiber; Madison, Wis., Fire Department’s innovative recruitment efforts; and Reno, Nev.’s, adoption of blockchain.

Technology can be a great blessing, capable of changing lives for the better. However, with that good, take the time to think twice about clicking links and be diligent when responding to emails. A little skepticism can go a long way into preventing a lot of headaches in the future.