Conquer expert bias in cybersecurity with next level focus

Cybersecurity has evolved into an increasingly complex field, typically approached from a technological perspective. Educational institutions produce graduates with deep technical knowledge in narrow specializations, and companies hire professionals with specific expertise to fill particular cybersecurity roles.

While specialized professionals are undeniably valuable, specialization carries both advantages and drawbacks.

Benefits of Specialization

• Specialists identify problems faster
• Specialists recognize solutions faster
• Specialists complete specific tasks faster and more efficiently
• Specialists possess deeper knowledge in their areas of expertise

Drawbacks of Specialization

• Specialists may miss problems outside their training
• Specialists often cannot see solutions beyond their established expertise
• Specialists struggle with tasks outside their specialization
• Deep expertise in one area frequently means limited knowledge elsewhere

The Challenge with Expert Bias

The issue arises when experts tackle problems outside their specialization. A security architecture specialist may not be the ideal person to solve human factors challenges in cybersecurity, despite their overall security knowledge.

For novel problems where solutions remain unknown, the best solutions to new problems are often found by creating a team of experts from different areas.

The Multidisciplinary Solution

Rather than relying on a single expert, organizations benefit from assembling teams across disciplines. For human factors in cybersecurity, this means combining expertise in psychology, organizational theory, communication, and human interaction alongside cybersecurity specialists.

Praxis Security Labs emphasizes this multidisciplinary approach, bridging gaps between different expert disciplines to solve complex organizational challenges.