Understanding the Concept of Security

CYBER SECURITY
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Cyber Security
1.0 Introduction
As the world grows technologically, attacks on the same developments have increased. Today, attacks on smartphones, credit and debit cards, computers, and even smart houses are rampant. Technologically savvy individuals have taken it upon themselves to inflict harm and danger to people, businesses, and countries. Major companies have been on the receiving end of some of the most devastating cyberattacks in the recent past. A 2014 report by DeSimore and Horton (2014) captures the Sony hack of 2014, which made many companies rethink their cyber security status. News of this hack spread fast, and major companies saw it fit to erect measures and security features that would help prevent such an attack. Cases of data breaches can be damaging, and companies stand to lose more than revenue. Because of its status as a superpower, the U.S. has been a target for a long time. Terrorists are always plotting attacks in the country, and therefore, it is not surprising that the security measures in the country are quite comprehensive. Johnson (2021) notes that the average cost of a data breach in the U.S. stood at $8.64 million in 2020. If left unchecked, these costs will cripple businesses and render others non-existent. Therefore, this paper discusses the concept of cyber security in the U.S. by demystifying the concept of security, providing a status report on cyber security in the U.S., and sharing the measures to reduce the threat posed by cyber security.
1.1 Understanding the Concept of Security
The concept of security is quite ambiguous in its meaning. The term security has been widely contested. People have often attached different meanings to it, with some applying it to their personal needs, others to societal needs, and still others attaching some political side to it. With regard to personal needs, this mainly entails protection against personal threats. These could be physical and psychological. With reference to societal needs, the term security denotes elements like the rule of law and due process, people’s freedoms, and the provision of a conducive environment to actualize progress. Lastly, the political aspect takes the form of policy agendas that yield or push the ideals of a country or region forward. This particular aspect could entail ideals such as climate change, the war on drugs, crime, as well as external threats, for example, terrorism.
As often propagated by countries worldwide, the ideals of security take policy measures that mainly address the concepts or ideals of economics, social injustice, epidemics, the war on drugs, and the environment (Baldwin, 1997, p. 5). Questions, therefore, arise as to whether these conceptions of the term security mainly help to shed light on the different phases of security or are different aspects that drive towards fundamentally different outlooks or understanding of the term security. Regardless of the above, there is a need to note that the term security continues to metamorphose as society continues to become increasingly complex. Today, security has extended to mental health and the state of one’s environment relative to their mental health. Furthermore, it has extended to the technological field as people, businesses, companies, and countries are rendered powerless at the hands of hackers. Therefore, it would be ill-advised to limit the term security to the aspects of terrorism or crime as it is often done. The concept is indeed wide, and there is a need to include other elements that fit within its broad understanding to be included.
2.0 Status of Cyber Security in the U.S.
Cyber security has taken center stage in the U.S. and other countries as some of the crucial sectors have been rendered powerless at the hands of cyberattacks. The risk posed by cyber security is quite extensive, and the financial implications of cyberattacks are simply the tip of the iceberg. According to a report by Deloitte (2016, p. 1), aside from the financial costs that a company, business, individual, or country suffers, there are other hidden costs that leave a lasting impact on the victim. Some of these costs mainly include a rise in insurance premiums, an increase in the cost of raising debt, the immense impact of operational disruption, loss of customer relationships and reputation, loss of contract revenue, devaluation of trade name, and lastly, loss of intellectual property (Deloitte, 2016, p. 2-3). These losses are added to the financial implications or losses that a company experiences, and in the end, the victim ends up losing more. These impacts are long-term and damaging to the success and survival of a company.
In the U.S., the government is keen on securing the country against cyber security attacks. In 2002, the government adopted the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) for the sole purpose of protecting the country, especially the federal agencies, against data breaches. As per FISMA, all federal agencies were expected to safeguard their data’s confidentiality, integrity, and availability by adopting and implementing agency-wide programs that would ensure protection. In 2014, the government saw it fit to revamp FISMA through certain amendments that sought to modernize some of the clauses within FISMA 2002. The government saw it fit to enhance FISMA in line with the rise and increased complexity of security issues.
In the 2020 financial year, the U.S. president’s budget included $17.4 billion that was set aside for cyber security issues (White House, 2021, p. 305). The report further indicated that because of the sensitive nature of the activities being undertaken by the White House, the number presented “does not represent the entire cyber budget.” As government information becomes increasingly at risk, it is becoming increasingly crucial to invest more money to offer protection. As indicated in the table below, the federal expenditure on cyber security continues to soar and will likely be on this trajectory for a long time. However, there is a worrying trend, especially regarding cyber security spending at the state level. Apparently, “the majority of States allocate between zero and two percent of their total I.T. budgets to cybersecurity” (White House, 2021, p. 306). The article indicates that even though cyber security concerns and challenges have increased, states have not adjusted their budgets to combat these concerns. Therefore, there is a lot of concern considering states’ lack of commitment to fighting cyber security. As cyberattacks become increasingly complex and damaging, there is a need to revamp security and enhance data protection in states.
Retrieved from: /content/pkg/BUDGET-2020-PER/pdf/BUDGET-2020-PER-5-8.pdf
3.0 Actions to Mitigate Cybersecurity threats
Cybersecurity continues to be one of the main threats to the nation’s sovereignty in the foreseeable future CITATION Gab04 \l 1033 (Weiman, 2004). As more cyberattacks on the U.S. government agencies, state and local governments, and the private sector continue, there has been a need to develop an actionable plan to address this imminent threat. In the last few years, there have been reports on key infrastructure systems being brought down by hackers, like the colonial pipeline, which led to a gas shortage in some parts of the country CITATION Dav21 \l 1033 (Sanger & Perlroth, 2021). Several other private companies and state and local government systems have been successfully cyber attacked and data siphoned out of them. These issues have prompted...