Why Cybersecurity Is Now a Quality of Life Issue

Cyber risk is no longer a specialist issue sitting with IT teams alone. The UK Government’s Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025 found that 43% of businesses identified a cyber breach or attack in the last 12 months, while phishing alone affected 37% of all businesses. Among organizations that spotted an incident, 29% said attacks were happening at least once a week.

The business cost is not abstract either. IBM’s 2025 Cost of a Data Breach Report put the global average cost of a breach at $4.4 million, while its research also found that 63% of organizations lacked AI governance policies and 97% of those reporting an AI-related security incident lacked proper AI access controls. In the UK survey, businesses that reported a financial impact from their most disruptive breach gave an average total cost of £3,550.

That is what makes Dewayne Hart such a timely cyber security expert to hear from. A retired U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer, founder of Secure Managed Instructional Systems, author, podcast host and former Forbes Technology Council contributor, Hart has built his work around a clear argument: cybersecurity is not only a technical challenge, but a leadership, mindset and quality-of-life issue that shapes how organizations operate and how people live.

In this exclusive interview with the Cyber Security Speakers Agency, Dewayne Hart discusses what first drew him into cybersecurity, why security capability matters more than reactive panic, how culture can become the real weak point inside a business, and why audiences need to start treating cyber resilience as part of everyday life rather than a problem for someone else.

Q1: What first drew you into cybersecurity, and at what point did you realize it was the field you wanted to build your career in?

Dewayne Hart: “When I retired from the military about 15 years ago, I was supposed to be a leadership coach. During the time I was studying for my master's degree program, I walked into the office and noticed that a friend of mine was studying for his CISSP certification. I picked up the book, browsed through it a couple of times and said, "You know what? I think that I want to branch into the cyber security industry."

“After that, I started to study the CISSP certification, passed it, and from there I became one of the people who were interested in cyber security. Later on, I started to do some other things, such as write, start the podcast, and here I am today working in the cyber security industry. It has been very rewarding.

“I thank my friend for leaving that book on the desk because if he had not left that book there, I would probably have been a leadership coach today. Now, there's nothing wrong with being a leadership coach, but I think that the cyber security industry is much more rewarding.”

Q2: When businesses talk about becoming more proactive against cyber-attacks, what do they most often misunderstand, and where should they actually start?

Dewayne Hart: “As I have walked through the industry and met a great number of people from all walks of life, the number one question they always ask me is, how can we become proactive?

“My answer is always standard and it's always the same. You need to understand your security capabilities. Your security capabilities make a determination on whether you know what's on your enterprise or whether you do not know what's on your enterprise. It can also branch into cyber visibility. Do you have visible indication of where your weaknesses are?

“There are some intricate programs that must work in tandem in order for leaders to understand their security capabilities. One is your asset management programs. Two is your configuration management program. Three is your vulnerability management program. If you can take those three programs and have them work in tandem, you can understand your security capabilities.

“Also, adding in your cyber tools and your cyber threat intelligence programs is going to help you out as well. So, if you add those into your asset management, your configuration management and your vulnerability management program, you will have an accurate indication of your security capabilities. Because if you don't have an accurate indication of your security capabilities, then this is how you create those blind spots.

“Blind spots are those areas of your enterprise that are sitting under the radar. They only become active when hackers find out where they are. So, if you understand your security capabilities, then you can beat hackers to the finish line.”

Q3: People often say employees are the weakest link in cybersecurity. You take a different view. Where do you think the real vulnerability sits inside an organization?

Dewayne Hart: “We often have a conversation saying that humans are the weakest link when it comes to cyber security. I like to take it to the next level and state that a dysfunctional cyber security culture is the weakest link for cyber security.

“Think about culture as people but also looking at the way that people operate. Look at the enterprise and see that you have silos. Silos are people who work in their own programs and their own ways.

“When we can remove those silos, then we have people who work as a group, and we have people who buy in to the cyber security culture. So, when you have a functional cyber security culture, then you can always beat hackers to the finish line.

“This is one of the strongest aspects I think that great leaders have. They are able to polish up a cyber security environment and build a functional cyber security culture.”

Q4: When you speak publicly about cyber risk, what do you most want audiences to understand once they leave the room?

Dewayne Hart: “As I begin to look into my past speaking events, and as I travel to future speaking events, I've always said that I want my audience to look at cyber security as a quality of life issue. Here's why. We live in a state now where cyber security is part of our lives. We cannot survive without cyber security and technology. So, people have to take it very seriously because it's a quality of life issue.

“Let's just imagine if, per se, Facebook goes offline. Imagine how people's lives change. Imagine how many of the other social media platforms go offline. Imagine if the internet was to just shut down for 24 hours. It seizes business operations. Our quality of life is just diminished. We can't go to the bank and get money. We can't go online. We can't use our cell phones.

“So, I've always told my audience that you have to look at cyber security as a quality of life issue. Everyone is held responsible, and this is where individual responsibility comes to the surface. Think about it. What is it that you are responsible for when it comes to cyber security? Because it's your quality of life.

“This is what I always like to preach to my audience too because if we were in a race and we are in lane A and hackers are in lane B, the one that makes it to the finish line wins. So, if you want to keep your quality of life at a high level, you've got to find ways to beat them to the finish line.”

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This exclusive interview with Dewayne Hart was conducted by Tabish Ali of the Motivational Speakers Agency.