Magazine
Focal Point
Focal Point is dedicated to helping business executives and IT leaders understand the management and security challenges posed by distributed business.
How AI and automation can boost compliance with Australia’s ‘Essential Eight’
Compliance rates with Australia’s complex Essential Eight cyber guidelines are anemic. The fix? Forget traditional compliance. Opt for “continuous compliance,” a more effective approach made even easier by AI and automation, which can regularly assess and update systems and satisfy auditors—whenever they come calling.
What you need to know about South Korea’s new AI law
South Korea is looking to become an international leader in AI, pouring money and resources into AI projects and adopting the new AI Basic Act. Set to go into effect in January, South Korea’s AI Basic Act is a comprehensive AI legal framework that offers a compelling alternative to legislation launched in the EU and Japan. Some experts think its adaptability could make it a model for other nations.
Lateral Movement Update: 3 Ways to Stop the Sideways Steal of Data Across Your Network
After penetrating the perimeter, hackers can execute lateral movement—and survey network structure, map devices, identify targets, seize data—in just 27 minutes. Old-school defense tactics (and, yes, AI and automation) can stop intruders in their tracks.
Help Desk Hell: The Targeted Attacks That Fool Your IT Workers and Steal Your Data
Social engineering, upgraded: Hackers use AI and advanced tech to exploit kind employees, breach networks, and devastate data—fast.
SolarWinds CISO Tim Brown Speaks Out Ahead of Final SEC Settlement
In a rare interview, SolarWinds CISO Tim Brown recounts the legal fallout from one of the biggest cybersecurity breaches in history, the personal impact (“The doctors confirmed a heart attack”), and why being a CISO is still a great job.
Tech Lessons From Spotify’s Rapid Scale-Up
Spotify’s Hosanna Ouellette recalls how the platform’s rapid scale-up required some modifications to its internal work processes and tech stack. She’s just one of 23 stand-out IT and security leaders interviewed in the new book “The Interconnection Between People, Process and Technology.”
The Essential Problem of Australia’s ‘Essential Eight’—and why SMBs Struggle to Comply
Australia's Essential Eight threat-mitigation guidelines were supposed to help organizations in both the public and private sector get up to speed with cybersecurity. It isn't working out for small-to-midsize businesses. Here’s why and what they can do.
Spoilage Alert: Cyberattacks Are Disrupting Europe’s Supermarket ‘Cold Chain’
A recent wave of cyberattacks on cold chain companies—most recently in Germany and the UK—have experts worried about the delivery of food, medicine and other perishables. We offer practical cyber strategies for logistics vendors and consider whether these attacks will ramp up in the U.S.
Survey: Security Pros Hit Snooze Button on Quantum Computing Alarm
The cybersecurity pros responsible for tracking the quantum computing threat are like the mysterious qubits that fuel this new tech: stuck in two states at once. Aware of the risk but not doing anything serious about it.
Subtle Sabotage: The Rise of Data Tampering, the Next Cyber Battleground
Data tampering is a stealthy, often underestimated tactic in a hacker’s toolkit that can distort audits, mislead regulators, and erode customer trust. Arm your teams with these five expert-endorsed strategies.
How a Barclays CISO Manages the Regulators
Focal Point presents Barclays CISO Andy Piper in the first of our sneak-peeks at interviews with stand-out IT and security leaders from the new book “The Interconnection of People, Process and Technology.” Published by Chief Disruptor and Tanium, the report shares insights from 23 experts on growing IT complexity, security threats, and the real barriers to scaling AI and automation.
A New Decentralized Cyberdefense Model Gains Traction in the EU
Inspired by changes in military defense strategy, the European public sector is adopting a decentralized command-and-control model where agility, collaboration, and resilience take precedence over rigid hierarchy.