Systems offline. Is your business ready?

Your business does not need to lose data to lose the ability to operate.

Payments stop. Refrigeration fails. Customers lose access to services.

Recent incidents and government warnings deserve attention beyond the security team.

• UNITED KINGDOM, November 3: The NCSC assessed AI-powered malware as highly likely to feature in a ransomware attack on UK critical infrastructure by 2028.

• AUSTRALIA, October 26: ASD’s annual threat report warned AI is reducing the effort needed to identify vulnerabilities and launch attacks at scale. The agency urged organizations to address legacy technology, logging, and supply-chain security.

• UNITED STATES, November 2–3: Turning Stone Enterprises reported a cybersecurity incident and precautionary system shutdowns. Properties announced cash-only operations, offline ATMs, and unavailable services.

• EUROPE, November 2: Retailers reported refrigeration disruptions across several countries. Some operators identified suspected cyberattacks.

My takeawayTreat cyber resilience as an operating requirement, with accountable owners and tested alternatives.

Ask your leadership team to:

• Identify the services your business must keep running.
• Map dependencies across identity, networks, suppliers, and connected equipment.
• Prioritize exposed vulnerabilities and unsupported systems.
• Restrict privileged and supplier access.
• Test recovery against business deadlines.
• Rehearse degraded operations when normal systems are unavailable.

Run a practical exercise: payments, identity, or a critical supplier becomes unavailable tomorrow morning.

Who decides what continues, what stops, and how customers receive updates?

Security is a leadership responsibility.

Ask for evidence your business is prepared.