There are many writers that try to predict the future and prognosticate on what is going to happen in technology. And there are almost as many that get it wrong. One of the most effective in this risky endeavor is George Gilder. He has been writing books and discussing technology and its future implications for decades and he has some very impressive victories in this field.
He has recently published a book called “Life After Google.” He said back in 1991 “The computer of the next era will be as portable as your watch and as personal as your wallet; it will recognize speech, and navigate streets; it will collect your mail and your news…It just may not do windows, but it will do doors, it will open doors to your future.” This is a gentleman to listen to.
Cybersecurity Is an Impossible Task
I get asked on a regular basis. What are we going to do about cybersecurity? We cannot stop the hackers and the cybercriminals. They are getting all of our data. Well this is true. In the current design of our cyber world you cannot stop them. Your information whether you like it or not is already out there. And I do not mean the hackers. I mean Google, and Facebook. As Mr. Gilder says these are free systems and they are inherently unsecure. There is nothing they can do to keep your data secure and keep it free.
Their entire purpose is to distribute and sell your information to as many advertisers and third parties as possible. That is their model. That is their purpose.
The answer, the next generation of technology will solve this. That next generation is the cryptocosm. He explains this so well: “security is not a procedure or mechanism, it is an architecture…the cryptocosm will start by defining…the ground-state…it is the ultimate non-random reality. The ground-state is you.”
I agree that ultimately cybersecurity is not a procedure or mechanism, but for the time being it is both of these things and more. But more importantly cybersecurity is an architecture. This is the work that I have been doing for all of these years.
What Does Your Architecture Look Like?
Do you even have an architecture? So many companies. Big established well run companies do not have a cybersecurity architecture. They do not have a cybersecurity posture to speak of. They are simply reactive. They are just trying to keep the bad guys out and respond when a problem happens. This is the reason most companies are failing at this. The very idea that you will respond tells you that you have already failed since the hacker is already stealing your information and now you are going to do something about it.
Your architecture should protect you from this inevitable problem. What are you doing about your architecture? How many senior level executives in your company have been involved in your companies’ cybersecurity posture? Are they even trained on what this means? I suggest that this is the ultimate focus of where your company should be looking if it wants to protect yourself in the future.