Embracing Soren Kierkegaard’s Philosophy in Cybersecurity

Moving Beyond the Aesthetic Life of Superficial Security 

Let’s talk about the cybersecurity life you lead. I bet you often find yourself trapped in a cycle of superficial solutions and temporary fixes. This cycle mirrors what the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard described as the “aesthetic life”—a life focused on fleeting pleasures, surface-level engagements, and the constant pursuit of distractions rather than deeper, meaningful commitments. In cybersecurity, this aesthetic life manifests as an obsession with addressing only the most visible, seemingly critical vulnerabilities, relying on shiny widgets, reports, and a never-ending stream of new tools to provide a false sense of security.  

The Aesthetic Life in Cybersecurity: Chasing Shadows  

Kierkegaard’s concept of the aesthetic life revolves around the idea that individuals often seek to fill their lives with pleasures and distractions, avoiding the deeper, often uncomfortable truths about their existence. This superficial existence is marked by a lack of genuine engagement with the self and the world, leading to a perpetual state of anxiety and dissatisfaction. 

In the cybersecurity realm, this aesthetic life can be seen in the way organizations and practitioners approach security management:  

1. Focusing on the Immediate and Superficial – Many organizations prioritize addressing only the most apparent and urgent vulnerabilities – the “critical” ones flagged by their latest security tools. This approach is akin to Kierkegaard’s aesthetic life, where the focus is on fixes that provide immediate gratification but fail to address underlying issues. What underlying issues you ask?  

2. Relying on Widgets and Reports for Validation – Just as the aesthetic life involves seeking external validation through pleasures and distractions, cybersecurity teams often rely on dashboards, widgets, and reports to reassure themselves that their security posture is strong. These tools provide a comforting illusion of control and certainty, but they rarely offer a true understanding of the organization’s overall risk landscape.  

3. Constantly Accumulating More Tools - In the aesthetic life, the pursuit of new experiences and distractions never ends. Similarly, organizations continue to buy more security tools, believing that more data and more reports will lead to better security. However, this approach often leads to an overwhelming amount of information, making it difficult to discern what truly matters.  

The Ethical Life: Commitment to Real Security   

In Kierkegaard’s ethical life, individuals move beyond superficial pleasures and distractions to embrace a life of commitment, responsibility, and moral integrity. Applied to cybersecurity, this means shifting focus from the immediate and superficial to a more thoughtful and proactive approach:  

1. Prioritizing What Truly Matters: Instead of chasing top 5 critical vulnerabilities critical, organizations should prioritize based on a deeper understanding of their unique security landscape. This includes considering factors like the ability to mitigate vulnerabilities, the impact of potential disruptions on business operations, and the effectiveness of existing security controls.  

2. Engaging with the Real Risk Landscape: The ethical life requires a genuine engagement with the realities of existence. In cybersecurity, this translates to engaging with the full scope of risks, rather than relying solely on tools and reports. It involves understanding the broader context of vulnerabilities, including the likelihood of exploitation, the potential impact on critical assets, and the availability of compensating controls.  

3. Proactive Risk Management: The ethical life is marked by a commitment to action. In cybersecurity, this means adopting a proactive approach to risk management. Instead of waiting for vulnerabilities to be flagged as critical, organizations should continuously assess and address exposures, ensuring that their security posture is always aligned with their business objectives.  

The Religious Life: Transcending Technical Fixes   

Kierkegaard’s religious life represents a stage of existence where individuals transcend the ethical to embrace a life of faith, characterized by a deep, existential commitment to something greater than themselves. While the religious life in Kierkegaard’s philosophy is inherently spiritual, its principles can be applied to cybersecurity as well.  

In Kierkegaard’s philosophy, the religious life emphasizes a commitment to ongoing reflection and continuous improvement, transcending superficial fixes in pursuit of a deeper, more meaningful existence. This philosophy aligns with Veriti’s approach to cybersecurity, which focuses on continuous security control assessment and proactive remediation rather than relying on temporary solutions. Veriti’s platform, recognized in the three Gartner Hype Cycle for Security Operations, 2024, Hype Cycle for Workload and Network Security, 2024 & Hype Cycle for Endpoint and Workspace Security, 2024 for Automated Security Control Assessment category, is designed to provide continuous monitoring and optimization of security controls.  

Through vast integrations, Veriti enriches its assessments with data from various sources, offering a comprehensive view of the organization’s risk landscape. Unlike traditional platforms, Veriti not only identifies vulnerabilities but also provides active, safe remediation, ensuring vulnerabilities are sealed without disrupting business operations. The platform’s advanced machine learning capabilities ensure that remediation actions are assessed in real-time, minimizing business impact and reducing false positives, thereby enabling security teams to focus on genuine threats. In doing so, Veriti embodies the continuous, reflective nature of Kierkegaard’s religious life, ensuring that cybersecurity is a proactive, evolving process that secures the organization while providing peace of mind to those responsible for its defense.