Today’s cybersecurity operations center (CSOC) should have everything it needs to mount a competent defense of the ever-changing information technology (IT) enterprise. This includes a vast array of sophisticated detection and prevention technologies, a virtual sea of cyber intelligence reporting, and access to a rapidly expanding workforce of talented IT professionals. Yet, most CSOCs continue to fall short in keeping the adversary—even the unsophisticated one—out of the enterprise.

Written as a Practical Guide, the book explains in plain language how to recognize and act upon cybersecurity threats to protect yourself and your business, how to manage risk, and how to recover when a cyber incident occurs. It gives executives vital information needed to understand cybersecurity best practices and how to integrate them into their business to manage risk. Those who read this book will be better prepared to train their personnel, use cybersecurity metrics to protect their bottom line, and act decisively to mitigate and recover from cyber incidents.

The technological edge enjoyed by organizations in developed nations is diminishing as the world further integrates its knowledge. Furthermore, while technology enjoys pride of place in any conversation on cybersecurity, technology is only part of the solution to real-time cybersecurity. Technology relies upon the people behind it, and because cybersecurity incident response increasingly requires collective action, this creates an entirely new paradigm for cybersecurity. The latest technologies remain bound to human social dynamics and approaches to collective problem-solving that pre-date our species’ mastery of fire.