Author Of Michael Echols, Reveals His Motivation Behind The Book, Secure Cyber Life: The Government Is Not Coming To Save You
Michael Echols, the former director of the Cyber Joint Program Management Office, National Protection and Program Directorate, at the Department of Homeland Security, is known as the prominent cybersecurity evangelist across the nation. He also spearheaded the two immensely informative sharing programs: Enhanced Cybersecurity Services (ECS) and Cybersecurity Information Sharing Collaboration Program (CISCP) and is additionally the founder of national cybersecurity consultation services, Max Cybersecurity.
In his book Secure Cyber Life The Government Is Not Coming To Save You, Echols unleashes digital self-defense tactics, all while creating cybersecurity awareness and revealing best practices to reduce risk.
Below, the author, entrepreneur, and globally renowned cybersecurity keynote speaker, Michael Echols, talks about what inspired him to write a book, that now serves as a go-to guide on cybersecurity.
Echols begins by sharing that plenteous systems and networks are exploited each day, and soon there will come a day where everyone will become a victim to it. Yet, what adds fuel to the fire is the lack of financial remedies, social security safety nets for cyber victims, or FEMA response systems to assist them.
“Thus, it is vital that each individual take personal steps to diminish their digital risk by employing the best practices. However, the true dilemma begins when people begin thinking that someone is protecting them against this threat, and become negligent. This perception that someone got you covered is what leads to the disaster, in the wake of the fact that even our government-registered identities are based on a number called Social Security, which can be stolen, too. While our legal and medical systems depend on chain-of-custody that too, can be corrupted. And, the system that itself is vulnerable to threat, how can it can safeguard you?” says Michael Echols.
Echols explains that the biggest cost of cyber-attack and the greatest cyber threat is the lost reputation. “The online assassination of your brand image, is the ultimate loss any business can incur, and it is something irreversible. Therefore, it is better to prevent it beforehand,” he says.
The best aspect of Echol’s book is that it provides an array of information for a wide range of organizations, empowering them to fight against potential threats. “Cybersecurity is all about risk management. While no two organizations are the same in terms of financial assets, talents, or business threats. They still can do plenty of things to secure themselves and manage the risk. All they need is to base the cybersecurity efforts on continuously comprehending threats, spotting vulnerabilities, and reducing intense consequences,” he says.
According to Michael Echol, the greatest benefit to effectively implementing a risk-reducing ecosystem is that they can simultaneously cultivate a cybersecurity culture within their organizational culture. “The books aim to lay down the principles that empower businesses against cybersecurity, all while providing a return on investment: strengthening the key weakness that hackers exploit daily, human stakeholders,” he says.
The negligent employees and human error contribute to nearly three-quarters of successful cyber intrusion. “The books serve as the pathway to opening the third-eyes of your employees, making them aware that their poor cyber hygiene can put their job, personal data, and business’s repute at stake. This, in return, spurs them to tap into their own competitive juices,” says Michael Echols.
Significantly, as the participant of the National Infrastructure Protection Plan and Executive Orders and National Response Framework types of doctrine, Echols emphasizes that the government has a crucial role to play when it comes to cybersecurity. While the government’s national platform is a great opportunity to promote the resilient effort, there remains a lack of leadership. “Realizing this lack of leadership, inspired me to pen down all that I learned through my career in this book, to teach anyone who wishes to learn about cybersecurity. Simultaneously, this book is meant to motivate those in leadership positions to play their part effectively,” concludes, Michael Echols.