Cyber Security War Games – Simulating a Serious Ransomware Attack

Cyber Security war game exercises simulate real-world cyber-attack scenarios and responses, allowing participants to test and improve their skills, as well as the effectiveness of their cybersecurity strategies and tools

CyBiz has been in New Zealand this week with Sygnia to conduct Cyber Security War Games with a client. On this occasion we ran a serious ransomware attack simulation in the client’s boardroom with the CEO, COO, HR, Legal, Communications, Marketing, Head of IT, It Operations, and Cybersecurity. Prior to the exercise, the client already had key cybersecurity and business continuity policies and procedures in place, and most of the team considered themselves to be reasonably ready to manage a ransomware attack.

The simulated pressure situation in which they had to make real-time decisions and choices about how to respond to the ransomware attack was an eye-opener for all of the participants. It helped them understand practical steps they can take to hone their response to a serious cyber incident in a way which ensures effective coordination and prioritisation of action when time is critical, clear messaging to internal and external stakeholders, and management of ongoing operations. All of this needs to take place under circumstances when their standard IT and communications systems may be down. It also enabled them to consider in advance important questions, such as whether or not to negotiate with the threat actor.

Facing the immense pressure of a real ransomware attack is not the time to discover that the cross-functional leaders and teams who will need to come together to guide your organisation through a difficult period are not familiar with the incident response protocols, or haven’t considered important details as to how this will be implemented in practice.

Your IT and Cyber security teams may be ready to respond to an incident from a technical perspective, but it’s the cross functional collaboration and internal and external communication which will ultimately determine how your organisation fares when facing a cyber-attack.

Benefits of Cyber Security War Games

When we run tailored, simulated Cyber Security War Games, the key benefits your organisation will gain include:

1. Crisis Management: Participants learn how to make decisions under pressure, communicate effectively, and allocate resources during a cyber crisis. In many cases this leads to further development and refinement of crisis management plans.
2. Team Collaboration: Involving cross-functional teams in war games fosters collaboration among different departments who will need to work together closely to respond to a cyber-attack, including senior management, operations, IT, security, legal, and communications. This improves coordination during actual incidents and enhances your organisation’s overall incident response capability.
3. Skill Development: War games provide participants with practical experience in dealing with various cyber threats and attacks. Post-exercise debriefs provide opportunities to analyse what went well and what didn’t during the simulation. This hands-on experience helps improve their relevant skills, incident response capabilities, and overall cybersecurity knowledge.
4. Innovation and Improvement: Simulating real-world cyber-attack scenarios allows organisations to test their response strategies in a controlled environment. This helps identify areas for improvement that might not be apparent during routine security assessments. This iterative process fosters a culture of continuous improvement which drives innovation in crisis management and cybersecurity strategies. Lessons learned can guide future cybersecurity planning and response efforts.
5. Risk Assessment: By experiencing simulated attacks, organisations can better understand their risk exposure and potential impact. This information is valuable for improving risk management strategies and prioritising cybersecurity investments.
6. Awareness and Training: Cybersecurity war games contribute to employee awareness and training. Participants become more vigilant about security best practices and the potential threats they face. Successfully mitigating simulated cyber-attacks boosts the confidence of participants in their ability to handle real incidents, which can positively impact decision-making and incident response effectiveness.

Cyber security war games offer a practical and valuable way to improve your organisation’s cyber security posture, enhance incident response capabilities, and build a more resilient digital environment. Given the risks that cyber security incidents pose to your organisation’s operations, reputation and finances, an investment in Cyber security War Games can be one of the most important ways to test your organisation’s cyber preparedness and prepare your management and cross-functional teams for the day they need to respond to a serious cyber-attack.