Companies often announce they’ve been “hit by a Cyber Attack,” using language that makes the incident sound like a natural disaster—unavoidable and beyond their control. This framing immediately positions them as victims.
In many cases, however, the underlying truth is far less dramatic. These incidents frequently stem from basic oversights that were never addressed. The root causes are embarrassingly simple.
Systems remain unpatched despite known vulnerabilities. Passwords go unchanged long after they’ve been exposed. Employees never receive the training needed to recognize common threats.
These aren’t sophisticated, nation-state–level operations. They are preventable failures. Calling them “attacks” obscures the organization’s responsibility and deflects attention from the decisions that made the breach possible.
When leaders rely on victim language, they imply inevitability instead of confronting operational gaps. Most breaches do not require cutting-edge exploitation—they succeed because fundamentals were ignored.
Building resilience requires honesty, trustworthiness and transparency. Organizations must stop using softened terminology and start embracing accountability for their own security posture.
True cybersecurity goes beyond tools—it depends on consistent discipline, cultural maturity, and leadership that prioritizes risk before it becomes a headline.
My opinion: Reframing these incidents as what they often are—organizational negligence—may feel uncomfortable, but it’s necessary. Only when companies acknowledge their role in these failures can they actually improve, reduce risk, and break the cycle of preventable breaches.
DeuraInfoSec specializes in AI governance, cybersecurity consulting, ISO 27001 and ISO 42001 implementation. As pioneer-practitioners actively implementing these frameworks at ShareVault while consulting for clients across industries, we deliver proven methodologies refined through real-world deployment—not theoretical advice.
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