Defending the Digital Frontier (PDF)

"The charge of securing corporate America falls upon its businessleaders. This book, offered by Ernst & Young and written byMark Doll, Sajay Rai, and Jose Granado, is not only timely, butcomprehensive in outlook and broad in scope. It addresses many ofthe critical security issues facing corporate America today andshould be read by responsible senior management." --Former Mayor ofNew York, Rudolph W. Giuliani

"To achieve the highest possible level of digital security, everymember of an organization's management must realize that digitalsecurity is 'baked in,' not 'painted on.'" --from Defending theDigital Frontier: A Security Agenda

Like it or not, every company finds itself a pioneer in the digitalfrontier. And like all frontiers, this one involves exploration,potentially high returns . . . and high risks.

Consider this: According to Computer Economics, the worldwideeconomic impact of such recent attacks as Nimda, Code Red(s), andSircam worms totaled $4.4 billion. The "Love Bug" virus in 2000inflicted an estimated $8.75 billion in damage worldwide. Thecombined impact of the Melissa and Explorer attacks was $2.12billion. Companies were hurt as much in terms of image and publicconfidence as they were financially. Protecting the "digitalfrontier" is perhaps the greatest challenge facing businessorganizations in this millennium. It is no longer a function of ITtechnologists; it is a risk management operation requiringsponsorship by management at the highest levels.

Written by leading experts at Ernst & Young, Defending theDigital Frontier: A Security Agenda deconstructs digital securityfor executive management and outlines a clear plan for creatingworld-class digital security to protect your organization's assetsand people. Achieving and defending security at the DigitalFrontier requires more than just informed decision-making at thetop level. It requires a willingness to change your organization'smindset regarding security. Step by step, Defending the DigitalFrontier shows you how to accomplish that.

With detailed examples and real-world scenarios, the authorsexplain how to build-in the six characteristics that a world-classdigital security system must possess. You must make yoursystem:
* Aligned with the organization's overall objectives.
* Enterprise-wide, taking a holistic view of security needs for theentire, extended organization.
* Continuous, maintaining constant, real-time monitoring andupdating of policies, procedures, and processes.
* Proactive to effectively anticipate potential threats.
* Validated to confirm that appropriate risk management andmitigation measures are in place.
* Formal, so that policies, standards, and guidelines arecommunicated to every member of the organization.

An intrusion is bound to occur to even the most strongly defendedsystems. Will your organization be prepared to react, or lapse intochaos? Defending the Digital Frontier introduces the Restrict, Run,and Recover(r) model that guides organizations in formulating andimplementing a clear, enterprise-wide, Agenda for Action toanticipate, detect, and react effectively to intrusions. You willlearn how to roll out an effective Security Awareness and TrainingProgram, establish Incident Response procedures, and set in placeDigital Security Teams to control damage and manage risk in evenworst-case scenarios. The digital threat knows no borders andhonors no limits. But for the prepared organization, tremendousrewards await out on the digital frontier. By strengtheningcollective digital security knowledge from the top down anddeveloping a rock-solid, comprehensive, on-going security agenda,every organization can build a secure future. Defending the DigitalFrontier will get you there.