February 2023

Trust, a Valuable Currency that is Backed by Winning Security Practices By Adam McCombs, Vantaca, LLC

T he coronavirus pandemic has radically shifted our living, working, and communicating behavior. So many of us went from in-person experiences to digital interactions overnight. As Forbes stated in a recent article, “Essentially, 2020 became 2025 on the digital acceleration timeline”. 1 While there are many benefits from accelerating this digital timeline, it also comes with much risk as result of increased cybercrime and added responsi bility for individuals, consumers, and businesses to employ enhanced cybersecurity measures. With an accelerated shift in behavior toward digital interactions, the burden of trust regarding cybersecurity has increased for businesses to ensure that these digital interac tions are conducted in a trustworthy and responsible man ner to safeguard customers. In a Harvard Business Review (HBR) article, a 2021 survey of 1,000 consumers conclud ed that more than 80% consider trust a deciding factor in their buying decisions. Warren Buffet once said, “Trust is like the air we breathe – when it’s present, nobody really notices; when it’s absent, everybody notices”. 2

With cybersecurity incidents dramatically increasing, establishing trust in your technology provider’s security posture is foundational in today’s fast-paced, remote ly connected world. In an increasing trend noted by Comparitech, 56% of customers are now actively interest ed in a company’s cyber-resiliency. 3 Unfortunately, in the latest data on security and data breaches, the trends are increasingly becoming more concerning as highlighted by Comparitech: 4 • 45% of US companies have experienced a security breach • California has suffered the most security breaches than any other state • The United States suffers from the most security/data breaches than any other country:

metamorworks/iStock/Getty Images Plus

- 2021: 213 million users were affected - 2020: 175 million users were affected

Given these alarming statistics, let’s examine how cyber security impacts the community association management industry and why we should care.

32

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 3