Is Your Cybersecurity Team Ready for an Earthquake?

Many cybersecurity teams don’t have contingency plans for when natural disasters strike. Consequently, they risk financial losses, reputation damage and a weakened security posture. Adequate preparation is the only way to maintain their defenses when they need it most.

Most Cybersecurity Teams Are Unprepared

Most cybersecurity teams aren’t ready to deal with natural disasters. While they’re well-equipped to handle any digital threat coming their way, they have little preparation for earthquakes, wildfires, or floods. Since these events are relatively uncommon, many see no need for contingency plans.

Natural disasters may be unpredictable, but they’re inevitable. For instance, The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) notes flooding happens in nearly every state in America. Preparation is crucial because these emergencies can happen anywhere at any time.

Why Should Cybersecurity Teams Prepare Themselves?

Cybersecurity teams must prepare natural disaster response plans to protect their security posture. A single earthquake can be devastating if they don’t know how to deal with it. In fact, aftershocks happen for weeks after the initial incident, in many cases, causing ongoing damage. Proper planning is vital to success.

While most cybersecurity teams are ready to respond to digital threats, many don’t consider events like natural disasters. Unfortunately, they’re more common than most think. According to experts, there’s always a 100% chance an earthquake will happen somewhere in the world. In fact, roughly 20,000 occur worldwide annually. On average, that’s nearly 55 per day.

Preparation protects organizations from digital threats. Maintaining security when vulnerable avoids financial losses and protects their reputation. Additionally, they prevent data-related legal issues from arising.

In some cases, cybersecurity teams have no choice but to prepare themselves. For instance, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requires defenses to withstand natural disasters with no exceptions. The threat of legal backlash should make planning a priority.

How Earthquakes Impact Cybersecurity Departments

Natural disasters can quickly leave cybersecurity teams in complete disarray. Even the more mild ones can be devastating if professionals are unprepared. Unfortunately, it only takes a single incident to cause lasting damage and weaken security.

Most natural disasters can permanently break security equipment. For instance, earthquakes pose a significant risk to critical hardware because they can cause vibration or fall-related damage. Alternatively, floods, wildfires, landslides, and tornadoes can induce heat, water, electrical, or physical destruction.

Unfortunately, broken screens and short-circuited Internet of Things devices can quickly become the least of professionals’ worries. Permanently losing datasets — especially sensitive or personally identifiable ones — causes long-term legal and operational repercussions.

Earthquakes can cause power outages and equipment failures, leading to unplanned downtime for the cybersecurity department. As a result, organizations don’t have defenses at a time when they’re most vulnerable. Even if every professional is present and ready to react, incident response is off the table.

Earthquakes can be devastating to security posture. Even though they only last a few minutes at most on average, they can cause irreversible damage in that span. Unfortunately, such an insignificant amount of time can determine if an organization can defend itself against digital threats successfully — which is why cybersecurity teams must prepare themselves.

The Impact of an Earthquake’s Aftermath

Once the ground settles and the emergency subsides, people try to return to normal as soon as possible. Unfortunately, earthquakes present long-term ramifications for physical and digital security. For cybersecurity professionals, the aftermath is often worse than the disaster itself.

Research shows cyberattacks become more frequent immediately following a natural disaster. Hackers typically see the chaos as an opportunity to strike. Cybersecurity professionals attempting to recover from the shock of the emergency are usually unprepared to deal with a sudden onslaught of threats, making them less likely to defend their organization successfully.

To make matters worse, cybersecurity professionals’ availability drops sharply following a natural disaster. Understandably, they prioritize their homes, pets, partners, or children over their jobs. Businesses that don’t plan accordingly won’t have an adequate incident response team.

Moreover, insurance doesn’t typically cover earthquake-related damage unless businesses intentionally enroll in a specific coverage plan. Insurers don't want to take responsibility since they are deemed ‘“Acts of God” — events humans can’t prevent or control. As a result, cybersecurity departments lack the funds to replace or repair critical equipment.

Physical security will weaken in the days following an earthquake. Seismic activity can damage security systems and structures, making break-ins easier. Also, the chaos of the emergency creates opportunities for criminals to slip in unnoticed. Any stolen or misplaced data will be challenging to recover.

Earthquake Preparedness Tips for Security Teams

Cybersecurity professionals can maintain security during emergencies if they plan accordingly.

1. Embrace Hardware Redundancy

Many cybersecurity departments believe redundancy is antithetical to optimization, so they eliminate duplicates to downsize operations and streamline management. Having hardware on standby is critical because it keeps things running after disaster strikes.

2. Leverage Early Detection Systems

Cybersecurity teams should have some sort of early detection system. Unfortunately, research shows current seismic stations are vulnerable to tampering and breaches. Instead, professionals should consider leveraging a third-party vendor or app.

3. Back up Data to the Cloud

Most cybersecurity teams back up their data. However, not all of them upload it to the cloud afterward. While cloud storage comes with unique security risks, defending against them is much more reliable than predicting when a natural disaster will occur.

4. Make Infrastructure Remotely Accessible

In many cases, natural disasters like earthquakes make businesses unsafe to enter. Because of these situations, security infrastructure should be remotely accessible so cybersecurity professionals can continue their work off-site.

5. Consider an Incident Response Retainer

Businesses often experience an unexpected, sudden shortage of critical staff after a natural disaster. Hiring a third-party cybersecurity vendor using an incident response retainer ensures cyber threats are dealt with no matter what.

6. Strengthen Authorization Mechanisms

Defending against cybercriminals while recovering from a natural disaster isn’t an effective strategy. Instead, cybersecurity professionals should encrypt data and establish strict authorization privileges so they won’t have to go on the offense to prevent compromises.

7. Raise Employee Awareness

Team leaders should prioritize awareness training. Panic often leads people to act purely on instinct unless they know exactly how to react. Routine drills and disaster simulations will help employees prepare mentally, improving their employer’s cyber defenses.

Earthquakes Are Inevitable but Can Be Defended Against

Earthquakes can cause irreparable damage to an organization’s cybersecurity infrastructure if teams don’t prepare adequately. While natural disasters are unpredictable and inevitable, they don’t have to lead to catastrophe. As long as professionals strategize accordingly, they can maintain security even in a crisis.