For businesses, the sentiment of together for a better internet during Safer Internet Day 2026, is a call to tangible action. Building organizational resilience must become a priority.
Cybercrime damages are expected to reach record highs despite the significant increase in cyber threat awareness. The years 2020 until 2022 had significant data breaches and the threat landscape keeps evolving. The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) data breaches caused by organizational poor data handling, lagging security, and technical gaps have consistently been reported.
At Risk Associates, we advocate for moving beyond basic internet safety advice and focusing on the foundational strength of your organization. This year, the priority needs to be more than simply avoiding a phishing link. It is time to remove the inadequacy of data processes that creates structural vulnerabilities.
Many people think of cyber threats as the work of a lone attacker. The reality today is quite different. Organizations like the ACSC say today’s cybercrime rings are as sophisticated and structured as legitimate businesses. These organizations use AI for complex phishing schemes and use automated bots to test for vulnerabilities 24/7.
The special focus of Safe Internet Day 2026 is the broadening of the risks of structural breaches. These are not caused by individual error, but by weaknesses in the organization’s data management and security processes.
The failure to observe cyber hygiene, the set of practices designed to keep systems healthy and prevent breaches, is a matter of time. ACSC predicts that cyber hygiene shortsightedness will lead to cyber hygiene failures as organizations begin to process large quantities of data.
The importance of digital trust is at an all time high. Customers, regulators, and business partners evaluate the capabilities of organizations based on how well the protect data. Organizations that lose or misuse customer data are penalized with the customer fallout that comes with a lack of data security and the frequent instances of data breaches.
Governments and other regulatory bodies are here to set the standards for digital security. In particular, the law now dictates how organizations must implement and practice digital security. This is crucial in global trade. Supply chain partners, for example, need to see data security and protection compliance documents, especially those in line with the GDPR.
At Risk Associates, we help organizations get the fundamentals right. All business information security should operate within the confines of the CIA Triad:
This year we also focus on Privacy Information Management. While the security of data and the privacy of people whom the data is about may seem disconnected, they actually are two sides of the same coin. With privacy being the other side of data security, ISO is to extend ISO/IEC 27001 to incorporate privacy management systems, thus the creation of ISO/IEC 27701. This adds a layer of emphasis on the responsible processing of personal data.
Many businesses fail due to the deceptive nature of compliance vs security. More often than not compliance will get reduced to one simple task: Did we do it? Security can’t do it. There has to be real protections in place. Are we safe?
The issue arises when businesses check the compliance box while letting critical controls. Security is continuous. There are new risks every day. When implementing new tech, or when new employees are brought in, everything is adaptive to the most current needs. What works today needs to be updated tomorrow.
The impact of a data breach can be disastrous. In addition to fines and downtime, organizations can lose revenue and damage their reputation. For most small businesses, one breach is catastrophic.
Once businesses are compelled to do something from a regulatory standpoint, compliance becomes an issue and generates peripheral anxiety. Rather than reacting to every new threat, organizations need a solid foundation. ISO standards provide this.
ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 27701 are the globally accepted standards for information security and privacy. Once you achieve them, compliance becomes a series of simple steps.
Risk Associates encourages the ISMS self-audit for Safer Internet Day. An ISMS is a great way to establish trust and future-proof your business.
| Feature | Reactive Approach (Compliance Gap) | Resilient Approach (ISO/IEC 27001 Aligned) |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger for Action | Reacts after a breach or complaint | Proactively assesses risks on a schedule |
| Data Handling | Ad hoc, no classification | Classified, managed with strict protocols |
| Employee Training | One-off, easily forgotten | Ongoing, builds human firewall |
| Incident Response | Unclear, can cause panic | Deploys a defined plan immediately |
| Vendor Management | Assumes safety, no checks | Audits and checks all supply chain partners |
| Digital Trust | Low, customers have doubts | High, seen as secure and reliable by customers |
Risk Associates has provided the cybersecurity community with trust for over 20 years. Our practitioners work with the best in industry cybersecurity: governance, risk, compliance, testing, certification, and training. We don’t do generic security, and we don’t do generic assessments. We do tailored security and assessments to meet your needs.
Certification should signal to your organization and the outside world that you are achieving something worthwhile, not merely checking a box. We push you to the next level. Our team walks you through the ISO/IEC 27001 certification process and helps you articulate the value of the certification to regulators and customers.
Contact us today and take your first step from simply surviving online threats to fully securing your digital operations.
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