Technologies that typify the fourth industrial revolution (4IR), such as AI, robotics, cloud, machine learning and IOT, will only serve society if cyber security is in place.
Cyber security has become an enabler within a world of increasingly converged technology, said Dr Lydia Kostopoulos, SVP emerging tech insights, KnowBe4.
Speaking at the ITWeb Security Summit 2022 in Johannesburg this week, Dr Kostopoulos, who works with the US Special Operations, speaks at NATO events and has worked with the United Nations and the IEEE Standards Body, said there are various stages involved in the evolution of technology, and cyber security connects it all together.
Kostopoulos cited ‘the six Ds of exponential technology growth', from Peter Diamandis and Steven Kotler's best-selling book "Bold", which she described as “a great way to anticipate how technology is changing, and where you can see the means to secure it.”
The six Ds
To get onto the growth trajectory, there are several phases, beginning with 'digitisation' (such as the evolution of movies, books, music from a physical to a digital format), then 'deception' (where there is cynicism about the actual change or innovation, which leads to a shift in mindset) and "disruption", where there is visible change in the markets and new companies, economies and fresh revenue streams emerge. After this comes 'demonetisation' followed by 'dematerialisation' and finally 'democratisation'.
Kostopoulos said she likes to pay attention to the last of the six, the "democratisation" phase, which happens when these technologies become cheaper and cheaper. This is when more people get access to new technologies as they become easier to transport and more affordable.
3D printing is an example of technology in the ‘deceptive’ stage, while disruptive technologies include GPS technology., while a range of technologies fall into the democratised category, including VR headsets, drones, Snapchat glasses.
Looking ahead, she said AI, like the Internet and electricity, is now considered to be a general purpose technology, and will only grow in significance, as will tech trends like augmented reality and virtual reality, and blockchain.
As more industries invest in smart technology, the relevance of cyber security will also increase substantially.
“With business supply chains changing, there is more to protect… consider that 85 billion things will be connected in another three years, which means that everything at the edge and at the communication layer will need to be secured," Kostopoulos said.
Cyber security, she said, is the enabler of these converging technologies as well as of business operations continuity, intellectual property preservation, and economic prosperity –in other words, cyber security is the enabler of our future. "And it is the human that is the frontline of that cyber security defence," she concluded.
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