Why are so many IT Leaders not communicating their errors?

Lack of communication for these errors may result from a fear of being fired, but there’s still little room for excuses.

It's no secret that IT leaders are facing the challenge of navigating AI usage, cyber-attacks, and thousands of tech workers being laid off, but what puzzles many, is when these same leaders don’t show initiative in reporting their own challenges. A recent report from the tech journalism platform, Viking Cloud, showed that nearly half of cybersecurity leaders refused to report falling for phishing incidents or having a security breach in their systems. And further reports from Arctic Wolf explain the many phishing scams that IT workers fall for, despite them supposedly knowing exactly what makes up a false link. Both articles express their concerns for this lack of communication, but why? Arctic Wolf suspects it’s a fear of being demoted or fired, but in trying times like these, there’s little room for errors or excuses.  

Arctic Wolf’s article proposes the need to express awareness and report errors within the AI and tech sectors. With workers being laid off in the current cybersecurity crises, it poses the question of are these failed reports due to the fear of termination? Or are the terminations because of the failure to report? Regardless, leaders need to understand the consequences they’d have when holding back on reporting, especially in tense times. The statistics of IT workers, both leaders and lower-tier workers, clicking on phishing links, offering confidential information with AI systems, and failing to communicate their errors are overwhelming and undoubtedly a risk to their employment and company. It’s also leading people to believe this will only make vulnerabilities worse.

So, what’s an IT leader’s priority when they’re sharing private information with their AI systems but also worried about the potential vulnerabilities that AI will create? Well, it’s of course a double-edged sword situation - leaders need to protect the security of their clients and workers but they also need to be honest and communicate clearly too. Stay tuned.

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Sources:

Many IT leaders click phishing links, and some don’t report them | Cybersecurity Dive

48% of Cybersecurity Bosses Failed to Report a Breach This Year