Your Cybersecurity is as Strong as the Weakest Link in the Chain

A quick question … why do so many banks still use mainframe computers on their network? Well, mainframe computers tend to run different software and have different architectures to much of the modern software, and can thus often be isolated from current threats. It’s a bit like a software airgap. Now, it has been found that an old server (created by Novell Inc) actually saved a major attack, but there is great unease about adding this old server back onto the global finance infrastructure.

Many years ago, Novell NetWare allowed organisational networks to interconnect and were the King of the Hill. In fact, they used their own networking protocol (IPX/SPX), and where each node had an IPX networking address. But, along came TCP/IP, and which allowed us to not only connect locally, on a global scale. Novell Inc eventually lost most of the market and was acquired The Attachmate Group. At its peak, it has revenues of over $2 billion.

The weakest link in the chain

I remember building audio systems, and where your system was as good as the weakest part of the audio delivery system. You might have great speakers, but if your amplifier is poor, then your whole system will be poor. And, so, it goes for cybersecurity. You might employ the best firewalls and encryption, but as…