GP3 Brasil: Watch out! Your Construction business might be under a cyber attack

Lately, risk experts have talked more about cyber risks. One important thing that I've recently heard from one of these experts is that cyber risk is not an IT department matter only, but it should be a strategic concern. What about cyber risks in the Construction industry?

The Construction Industry has experienced an increase in the use of digital tools during the last years. The COVID-19 pandemic has also pushed their adoption and virtual collaboration with people working from their homes. The 2019 Aon Global Risk Management Survey Report shows that the completion of cyber risk assessment in the Construction industry raised from 36% in 2017 to 43% in 2019. It has a lot of room for improvement, and the increase in digitalization and virtual work increases the exposure to cyber risks. So, how prepared is your organization to avoid, mitigate, and respond to cyber-attacks? Can you imagine the BIM model of a strategic project being hacked? Are people in your organization aware of the potential of cyber attacks? I have personal experience with it. Around two years ago, I received an e-mail from the VP of a construction company in the U.S. The message had a sort of a professional invitation, but at the same time, the structure and language of the message sounded weird. I decided to check with the sender, and he/she answered me that he/she was hacked! He/she was the VP of a construction company, so you probably can imagine how many people got the same message and maybe clicked on the phishing message spreading the issue.

Yes, cyber attacks are escalating. We need to be aware of it and include them in our risk management strategies.

What do you think about cyber risks in the Construction industry? Share your thoughts, experience, and opinions. Please, keep the organization's name private.

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