In an interview with Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, Mr Hennes of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, welcomes the recognition, which happened 'over the last two years', that cyber security risk management 'is an issue for all companies, not just those traditionally considered to be technology driven'. Consumer-facing companies will find the issue a potentially bigger threat to their reputation - if details of consumers are hacked - than those in manufacturing, however. 

In charge

Board members need to be aware of several issues. Even the way they communicate between themselves - usually electronically - can be hacked and cause problems. Board members, he says, need to treat cyber risks 'as they would any other significant enterprise risk, such as business risk and ensuring accurate financial reporting'. A 'knowledgeable officer' needs to be put in charge of the issue in the country. He adds: 'Depending on the overall importance of the issue to the company and the board’s level of comfort, it may consider looking for a director with expertise in this area, although those directors are hard to find.' Source: Metropolitain Corporate Counsel