Social media has gone far beyond daily life updates, vacation photos, GIFs and puppies. These days, online platforms and its algorithms can influence change with significant implications on policy and law. Remember Bitcoin? Political riots? The most recent example brought Wall Street to its knees when amateur investors mobilized on Reddit’s WallStreetBets to send GameStop shares soaring and hedge funds reeling. AI technology helped fan the flames, and sadly, mom and pop investors as well as the hedge fund titans paid the price when GameStop’s game stopped and shares eventually tumbled down to earth.
Maybe the ability to galvanize small investors through a handful of memes is our wakeup call. But it’s not the first or only play in a long line of technology threats. Consider phishing and telemarketing schemes. They’ve been used to fleece substantial assets from unsuspecting consumers with little recourse. This industry operates call centers and infrastructure in areas of the world where there is little oversight and regulation. And we consumers pay the price.
Unfortunately, we cannot fully protect ourselves from overseas threats nor can we prevent AI bots and Reddit users from engaging in dangerous online behavior. Tech companies themselves wouldn’t know how to root out bad apples based on the rise of VPNs (Virtual Private Networks), which hide regular users behind ‘cloaked’ servers.
The real lesson here is small groups using simple technology can insert themselves into our politics, our economy and our everyday lives. Businesses are not immune. Are we prepared for another disruption? We best be.
Until regulators, policy makers, legal experts and tech companies come together to find a solution, we’ll need to guard against everyday threats. Thankfully, certified experts at CIBR Ready provide both turnkey and custom Cyber Security solutions to businesses and public sector agencies lacking either the expertise or capacity (or both) to address complex and evolving technologies. Pathways, technology, staffing, training, and certification – everything from assessment to implementation – is available at scale. CIBR provides a path to a secure environment for companies that might not be able to obtain it on their own. Check us out and learn how to keep yourself secure and stable by any ‘memes’ necessary.
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