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Two Decades of Cybersecurity

Where have we been, where are we going next.

I'd say that the two hazards that have entered our emergency management world in the last two decades have been climate change and cybersecurity.

While people can debate climate change and the causes all they want, the impacts are already being felt in the frequency and severity of disasters. There is no denying that cybersecurity has become a significant threat. Almost every week there is something in the news about a significant cyber penetration of one sort or another. The Colonial Pipeline hack earlie this year showed the potential impact of our critical infrastructure operations from a cyberattack.

Government Technology magazine has a good article that traces the past 20 years of our collective cyber experience. See Through the Years: A Broad Look at Two Decades in Cybersecurity

There is even a mention of our discipline and the need for disaster plans to include cybersecurity events.
Eric Holdeman is a nationally known emergency manager. He has worked in emergency management at the federal, state and local government levels. Today he serves as the Director, Center for Regional Disaster Resilience (CRDR), which is part of the Pacific Northwest Economic Region (PNWER). The focus for his work there is engaging the public and private sectors to work collaboratively on issues of common interest, regionally and cross jurisdictionally.