--- title: Considering proximity, potential, and imminent threat... description: Change Your Password Day image: https://www.coolspirit.co.uk/hubfs/Illumio%20Blog%202.jpg --- ![](https://www.coolspirit.co.uk/hubfs/website/images/curves/hero/pngs/hero-curve-white.png) ## Considering proximity, potential, and imminent threat... Written on: ** Feb 6, 2025 12:32:19 PM ** Written by: ** Paul Frost ** Topic [COOLSPIRiT, Cyber Security, Illumio] Share this post: ## Oh, a blog post. 'Thought leadership'. This one really got me thinking! If you've met me, you'll know I'm not so arrogant as to suggest I can tell you how to think. However, I'd like to share an interesting insight from the Illumio World Tour in London. One of the speakers raised a thought-provoking point about risk. Risk is typically represented as probability multiplied by impact. But in cyber terms, how do you gauge that probability? It's certainly not zero, but how likely is it? Let's consider three factors: proximity, potential, and imminent threat. Proximity: This is not a consideration since the internet presents gateways to black hats anywhere in the world. Potential: Does the attacker have the tools, access, and capability to conduct an attack? If so, combined with the other factors, you could argue that a cyber attack is imminent. According to a recent report which detailed costs of ransomware attacks, businesses are spending more each year, yet the efficacy of attackers is increasing, with more breaches reported year over year. Therefore, the probability is high. The impact is the area that can be assessed. If an attacker hijacked a remote session, took advantage of a zero-day vulnerability before your team could patch it, or used social engineering to obtain compromised credentials, how quickly could you spot unusual traffic around your network that might signal lateral movement across your environment? It's a sobering thought, isn't it? It could look like legitimate traffic, just heading to unusual areas of the network. Microsegmentation technology, such as Illumio, offers security by restricting application access to a contained set of resources, minimizing the potential spread of an attack. if you'd like to learn more, contact me today via email: [PaulF@coolspirit.co.uk](mailto:PaulF@coolspirit.co.uk) Credit: [Paul Frost](https://www.linkedin.com/in/pafrost/) --- ###### COOLSPIRiT is here to help you keep secure To find out more about Illumio, [visit our webpage here.](https://www.coolspirit.co.uk/illumio) Alternatively, contact our expert team today at [hello@coolspirit.co.uk](mailto:hello@coolspirit.co.uk) or call 01246 454222.     ![](https://www.coolspirit.co.uk/hubfs/website/images/curves/top/top-curve-dark-blue.svg) ## Discover our latest insights #### Enhance your knowledge by browsing our extensive library of case studies, brief sheets, data sheets, ebooks and white papers. 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