In late 2018, a statement from the newly appointed Minister of cyber security from Japan caused a big surprise. The minister, in a meeting with legislators, admitted that he had never used a computer in his life. As an explanation, he indicated that since he was 25 years old he had been independent, having secretaries and assistants who were in charge of operating the equipment.
This episode, which occurred in the government sector, is an example of a situation that is also reproduced in the private sector. Technological advances in information technology have been so rapid that many of the main business executives lack the necessary knowledge in this regard, having to resort to other officials to take care of the work.
Task shifting, of course, has been practiced for centuries in business, ranging from typists and accountants to salespeople, maintenance technicians, and machine operators. The magnitude of this delegation is linked to the size of the company, both growing at the same time, but usually it does not represent any problem if the level of operations justifies it.
The difference in the case of information technology comes from the fact that it is becoming impossible, even for small businesses, to operate outside their scope, which generates vulnerabilities that can affect them. This implies that if the directors of these companies, many times their owners, do not have the required knowledge, they should contract services of cyber security to effectively protect your data, resources, and transactions, and those services come at a cost that often exceeds your budget limits.
The result is often that established security mechanisms are insufficient, putting not only these small businesses at risk, but also their customers and suppliers, as they interact with them.
