Host: Welcome to A.I.S. Insights, powered by Living Knowledge. I’m your host, Anna Ivy Summers. Today, we're diving into a study that tackles a critical issue for every modern business: cybersecurity. The study is titled, "Adopt Agile Cybersecurity Policymaking to Counter Emerging Digital Risks".

Host: It explores the urgent need for more speed and flexibility in how organizations create and update their security rules. We’re joined by our expert analyst, Alex Ian Sutherland, to break it down for us. Alex, welcome.

Expert: Thanks for having me, Anna.

Host: Let's start with the big picture. Why is this topic so important right now? What's the problem this study is addressing?

Expert: The core problem is that many businesses are trying to fight tomorrow's cyber threats with yesterday's rulebook. They often rely on static, outdated cybersecurity policies.

Host: What do you mean by static?

Expert: It means the policies are written once and then left on a shelf. They’re often only updated after the company suffers a major security breach. This reactive approach leaves them completely exposed to new attack methods, risks from new technology like AI, and even threats coming from their own business partners. It creates a massive security gap.

Host: So businesses are always one step behind. How did the researchers investigate this? What was their approach?

Expert: They went directly to the front lines. The study is based on in-depth interviews with nine senior cybersecurity leaders—people like Chief Information Security Officers and CTOs from a range of industries, including finance, technology, and telecommunications. They wanted to understand the real-world pressures and challenges these leaders face in keeping their policies effective.

Host: And what were the key findings? What are the biggest risks that demand this new, agile approach?

Expert: The study pinpointed four primary risk areas. The first is internal: outdated legacy systems. These are old software or hardware that are critical to the business but can't be easily updated to defend against modern threats.

Host: And the other three?

Expert: The other three are external. The second is the rapid pace of emerging technologies. For instance, one expert described how hackers can now use AI to clone a manager’s voice, call an employee, and trick them into revealing a password. An old policy manual won't have a procedure for that.

Host: That's terrifying. What's the third risk area?

Expert: Attacks via third parties, which is a huge one. Hackers don't attack you directly; they attack your software supplier or a contractor who has access to your systems. This is often called a supply chain attack.

Host: And the final one?

Expert: The fourth risk is disruptive external events. Think about the COVID-19 pandemic. Suddenly, everyone had to work from home, often on personal devices connecting to the company network. This required a massive, immediate change in security policy that most organizations were not prepared for.

Host: That really puts it into perspective. So, Alex, this brings us to the most important question for our listeners: why does this matter for their business, and what can they do about it?

Expert: This is the critical takeaway. The study provides a clear roadmap. It’s about shifting from a passive, 'set-it-and-forget-it' mentality to an active, continuous cycle of security improvement.

Host: Can you give us some concrete actions?

Expert: Certainly. For legacy systems, the study recommends implementing modern digital asset management. You must know what systems you have, what data they hold, and how vulnerable they are. For emerging tech like AI, it’s about proactive 'technology scouting' to anticipate new threats and having a resilient risk management framework to assess them quickly.

Host: What about those third-party risks?

Expert: Here, the study emphasizes strengthening vendor risk management. One interviewee told a story about their company losing its entire code base because a password manager they used was hacked. The lesson was clear: you need to conduct agile risk assessments of your suppliers and build clear security controls directly into your contracts. Don't just trust; verify.

Host: And for preparing for those big, disruptive events?

Expert: It comes down to two things: continuous employee training and robust business continuity plans that are tested regularly. When a crisis hits, your people need to know the procedures, and your policies need to be flexible enough to adapt without compromising security.

Host: This has been incredibly insightful. So, to sum it up, the old way of writing a security policy once every few years is no longer enough. Businesses need to treat cybersecurity policy as a living document.

Expert: Exactly. It needs to be agile and adaptive, constantly evolving to meet new threats head-on.

Host: That’s a powerful message for every leader. Alex Ian Sutherland, thank you so much for breaking down this crucial study for us.

Expert: My pleasure, Anna.

Host: And thank you to our audience for tuning into A.I.S. Insights, powered by Living Knowledge. Join us next time as we translate another key piece of research into actionable business intelligence.