Cyber and technology risk is an inevitable part of business today. In an era where digital innovation drives business operations, cyber threats have become increasingly sophisticated and prolific. Cyber Risk Quantification using the Factor Analysis of Information Risk (FAIR) methodology is a risk-based approach for quantifying cyber risk in financial terms. This approach provides organizations with quantitative insights that support informed decision-making.
Do you know what tactics are used by attackers in a data breach and how much it would cost your organization if one were to happen tomorrow?
Enterprise functions make decisions based on financial forecasts and measure their past performance with financial metrics. However, cyber security is often not viewed from a finance perspective. Cyber risk has traditionally been managed with qualitative methods, which is subjective and uses words like High, Medium or Low to describe the level of risk. When you think of quantitative methods, maybe you think you will get a precise number, but it's actually a distribution or a range of numbers.
With Cyber Risk Quantification analysis using FAIR, we scope your cyber risks and quantify the Loss Event Frequency and the probable Loss Magnitude, measuring how often a threat event like a data breach could occur and the probable financial impact of a successful breach attempt.
Risk (in €) = Loss Event Frequency (in a %) + Loss Magnitude (in €)
The effectiveness of a risk-based method like CRQ using FAIR is further strengthened when used in conjunction with other cybersecurity frameworks and controls such as NIST CSF, CIS V8, Cyber Kill Chain and MITRE ATT&CK.
Control assessments are not just a compliance exercise. When you map your risk scenarios to the MITRE ATT&CK framework, you are able to categorize threats by the techniques and tactics used by attackers. With this granular view, you are able to assess controls that will mitigate the Loss Event Frequency and the probable Loss Magnitude while providing the greatest ROI.
Case study: A global advertising company enlisted the consulting and advisory services of C-Risk
Before launching an extensive Identity and Access Management (IAM) program, and after discussions with the IT department's first line of defense, the CISO needed to determine the control families that are most effective in mitigating ransomware attacks to justify the investment and implementation.
The first step was a macro CRQ of the top risk scenarios related to the decision of the CISO. From this, we quantified the Loss Event Frequency and Loss Magnitude (or financial impact) for each risk scenario. We also mapped the ransomware scenarios to the most common kill chain using MITRE ATT&CK framework. This helped us uncover gaps in controls or which controls were the most effective in mitigating risk. Finally, factoring in the cost of implementation, we were able to quantify the amount of risk that was reduced for every dollar spent. As a result, the CISO was able to make an informed decision regarding prioritization and justify a budget for new controls.
Presenting a proof of concept can be a critical step before securing full board support for a new security investment. With Cyber Risk Quantification, you'll quickly have the business metrics to support your proposal.
Cyber Risk Quantification provides quantified insights into the most critical vulnerabilities, allowing organizations to prioritize their resources and controls effectively, addressing the most costly risks first.
Senior executives may not have IT expertise, but they are increasingly aware of cyber risks. CRQ quantifies risk in financial terms, which can inform decisions on resource allocation and cyber risk oversight.
Our FAIR-certified experts will help you prioritize your IT security investments, improve governance and increase your organization's cyber resilience.
Identify how controls impact the frequency and impact of a specific scenario along each step of a cyber kill chain.
Allocate resources effectively with a data-driven approach, addressing the most costly risks with the appropriate controls.
Quantified recommendations facilitate communication between the 1st line of defense (operations) and the 2nd line of defense (risk management and/or audit).
Following regulatory compliance requirements for risk-based controls will protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of your information.
CRQ using FAIR is a flexible model that can inform targeted decisions while also being valuable in evaluating broader security strategies over the long term.
Using MITRE ATT&CK to scope risks gives you a clear event sequence, enabling efficient control implementation to mitigate cyber incident impacts.
C-Risk supports senior management, CSOs, CISOs, risk managers. We help refine your investment strategies with accurate, data-driven analyses, communicating cyber risks in financial terms.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Cyber Risk Quantification (CRQ) evaluates the frequency and potential financial impact of a particular cyber threat. Instead of descriptive terms or technical jargon, CRQ translates cyber threats into clear monetary values, making it much easier for decision-makers to understand the potential impact of those risks.
A good cybersecurity strategy is comprehensive, adaptive, and continually evolving to mitigate the risks associated with the dynamic nature of cyber threats. Cyber Risk Quantification using the FAIR standard and methodology identifies the frequency and cost of cyber and technology risk. This risk-based approach makes sure you are spending on security where it provides value and improves cyber resilience.
Security control families are groups of security controls organized by their functionality or the aspects of security they address like physical access, incident response, denial of service protection. NIST SP 800-53, for example, has 20 security control families and within each family are a number of controls.
C-Risk is a recognized expert in Cyber Risk Quantification using the FAIR™ methodology. We provide CRQ consulting services, managed services, and training.
