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Are cyber attacks on retailers and manufacturers preventable or par for the course? asks John Linford, Security Portfolio Forum Director, The Open Group.
Cyber attacks now rank among the biggest threats to major businesses. In the UK, recent attacks on well-known brands, including Marks & Spencer (pictured), Co-op, Harrods, and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), have caused notable disruption to operations. Across North America, the aerospace sector has seen a similar rise, with attacks affecting Hawaiian Airlines, WestJet, and Collins Aerospace, leading to flight delays and operational interruptions. These incidents illustrate that cyber risk is continuous, complex, and increasingly global.
Prioritizing the principleย ย
As AI accelerates workflows and enhances operational efficiency, it simultaneously increases the capacity for cybercriminals to exploit vulnerabilities. In this evolving landscape, no single technology can be considered a permanent safeguard. Flexibility and adaptability are essential, and this is where the Zero Trust principle becomes critical.
Zero Trust stems from the Jericho Forumโs emphasis on de-parameterization and was popularised by John Kindervag in 2009, highlighting the dangers of assuming trust within a network. As Gartnerโs Neil MacDonald notes, โZero Trust is not a technology; it’s a security philosophy that rewires how we think about access.โ While adoption is growing, implementation remains uneven. A recent survey showcased that while 96 per cent of corporations plan to incorporate Zero Trust, only 35 per cent are actively implementing it. Closing this gap is essential for long-term resilience.
Operational preparedness in practice
Zero Trust is fundamentally about protecting data, on any network or platform, through ongoing, context-aware verification. Security checks are performed case by case, with risk carefully assessed and mitigated as appropriate. This approach enables organizations to safeguard assets even when breaches occur, minimising impact, and preventing lateral movement by attackers.
Importantly, Zero Trust is not a static target. Security infrastructure must evolve alongside threats, continuously updating policies, tools, and processes. By regularly questioning every component of internal systems and each individualโs access, organizations can maintain a posture that is both flexible and resilient.
The recent JLR cyberattack underscores this reality. Beginning in late August, the attack forced a five-week shutdown of JLRโs UK factories at Solihull, Halewood, and Wolverhampton. Dealer systems were intermittently unavailable, suppliers faced delays, and the broader supply chain experienced significant disruption. According to the Cyber Monitoring Centre (CMC), this incident could cost ยฃ1.9 billion, the most economically damaging cyber event in UK history. More than 5,000 businesses were affected, and full recovery is not expected until January 2026.
While these figures are striking, they should not lead to fatalism. The JLR incident illustrates the value of operational preparedness in practice: understanding which networks and systems are mission-critical, analysing interdependencies across the organization and its supply chain,and designing recovery processes that can be executed swiftly and intelligently. When coupled with Zero Trust principles, this approach allows organizations to respond to incidents with measured precision, reducing both operational disruption and financial exposure.
Begin Zero Trust
To implement Zero Trust successfully, organizations should begin with robust, vendor-neutral definitions, alongside industry standards and best practices. This foundation ensures that initiatives are aligned with long-term operational resilience rather than short-term fixes. Crucially, Zero Trust does not require a complete โrip and replaceโ approach for existing systems. Instead, it enables organizations to integrate these principles with their current infrastructure, progressively strengthening security controls while maintaining business continuity.
Practical strategies include asset-centric controls, pervasive security integrated into corporate culture and continuous trust validation using all relevant data. By continuously validating access and scrutinising network activity, organizations create an environment where attackers struggle to move unseen, critical assets remain protected, and business operations can continue with confidence, even in instances where a breach could occur.
Positive, proactive
While headlines often emphasize the scale of disruption, the deeper story lies in how organizations turn these challenges into opportunities for growth and resilience. Companies that weave Zero Trust principles into the fabric of operational planning are better positioned to navigate uncertainty, respond to emerging threats, and reinforce confidence among customers and partners. Security, in this sense, becomes less a set of constraints and more a foundation for sustained operational strength.
The JLR incident illustrates this dynamic vividly. The disruption prompted careful coordination across its supply chain, revealing how proactive planning can limit ripple effects and accelerate recovery. By translating lessons from such events into policies, training and technology, organizations not only address immediate vulnerabilities but also cultivate capabilities that strengthen them for future challenges.
A resilient cyber future
The cyber threat landscape will continue to shift in ways both expected and unforeseen, yet organizations retain the ability to shape their response. By embedding Zero Trust principles into everyday operations and cultivating a mindset of operational preparedness, businesses can transform uncertainty into informed action, ensuring that critical assets remain protected and continuity is preserved even under pressure.
Cybersecurity, at its best, is less about eliminating every risk and more about fostering resilience. When approached thoughtfully, with Zero Trust as a guiding philosophy, organizations are not merely reacting to threats. By strengthening networks, refining processes and anticipating challenges before they escalate, they are positioning themselves to navigate disruption with agility and confidence, turning potential crises into opportunities for sustained operational strength.
