Page 55 - RC19 EDGE Spring All - final-2 - hi res

Business Solutions

REAL ESTATE CYBER RISK:

ARE YOU PREPARED?

DON GOLDSTEIN
CEO
5Q Cyber

Security breaches are, unfortunately, a part of our reality These categories are converging, and yet the risk man-
now. For industry, they have a high monetary cost, and agement process requires a certain amount of separation:
cause erosion of the public trust. A company’s reputation because of inherent vulnerabilities, building systems should
in such instances relies on staying apprised of cyber be separate from the corporate networks. In most cases,
security protections, readiness, and a quick response to people—not their systems—are quite often the biggest secu-
malicious events. rity risk. Consistent, ongoing security awareness and training
is critical, as well as constant monitoring.
Executives at all levels of real estate organizations are
spending more and more time on cybersecurity issues The physical infrastructure is in some ways more
today. As innovation is driven by big data and smart susceptible to attack, simply because it’s not traditionally
analytics, a greater scope of connectivity between as well managed by people versed in security as
systems and buildings will require comprehensive and the corporate side. However, motive for an attack is
ongoing security strategies. important. Just because something is vulnerable doesn’t
mean it’s prime for compromise; it may not be interesting
Historically, there are two areas of concern: for someone to compromise a system with little return. A
company should focus their security efforts on the bigger
1. CORPORATE SECURITY AND INFORMATION targets that would yield greater gains for an intruder, and
TECHNOLOGY: IT place better controls over who accesses, implements and
These are the organizational systems and business maintains those systems.
applications employees use every day, including email,
financial applications, HR applications, the internal Digital transformation leads to additional challenges
corporate network, internet services, and more. This The digital transformation that’s taking place in the real
category is generally managed by the corporate security estate industry and the incredible investment in digital
team, often within the technology function of the products means that the profile of real estate is increasing
organization. as never before. Real estate is now creeping into one of the
top areas for nefarious infiltration. One reason may be that
2. ASSET OPERATIONAL TECHNOLOGY it’s a softer target. Many real estate organizations are not
AND SECURITY: OT subject to regulations from the SEC and other governing
Traditionally the main building systems, these now bodies; as an industry, real estate is not regulated the
include networked building automation systems, as same way as banks and financial institutions, insurance
well as connectivity to the outside at all levels. Also companies, airlines, and utilities. These other industries
known as the Industrial Internet, the physical buildings have had more focus on making sure they are keeping
are increasingly integrated with sensors and wireless themselves appropriately locked down.
functions. Responsibility in this area may vary depending
on how properties are operated; it may fall under the Another reason, of course, is information. On the
purview of the owner, a third-party service provider, corporate side, real estate companies provide services
building engineers, or a combination of entities. that create volumes of data, valuable information in

53

RC19 EDGE Spring All but Covers - final - 19APR.indd 53 4/19/19 3:17 PM