MiMfg Magazine
PREMIUM
ASSOCIATE
8
May 2020
Member
Spotlight
Mike Maddox
President
ASK
Member since June 2016 • Learn more at justask.net
Technology is an amazing
tool. It can foster unprecedented
business growth, increase process
efficiency, attract next-generation
talent and turn your company
into a global leader in innovation.
However, it can also become a
catastrophic weakness that gives
cyber criminals access to your
intellectual property and customer
data and allows for one human
error to devastate your future.
As a cyber security and IT
management consultant, Lansing-
based ASK helps manufacturers
leverage their tech to help do
more business while protecting
them from every type of breach.
“Manufacturing has, is and
will continue to be the lifeblood
of Michigan — we are highly
committed to the industry and
admire the people who roll up
their sleeves and make things,”
said Mike Maddox, president of
ASK. “With that said, most
manufacturers don’t realize how
vulnerable their business can be
even as they invest in technology
solutions meant to make them
more competitive.”
Cyber criminals like the ones
Maddox and the ASK team deal
with can be the stereotypical “evil
geniuses” as they continuously adapt
to even the most state-of-the-art
security, sometimes changing
their tactics by the hour.
“It’s really a game of cat-and-
mouse with the web being full of
people who are looking to do harm,
exploit and extort without a care
as to who is on the other end of
that attack,” explained Maddox.
“Because of that, manufacturers
who rely on internal IT staff —
most of whom have to juggle cyber
security with an array of other job
How I Motivate
My Team
By being authentic
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Coaching manufacturers
to help protect and grow
their business.
requirements — will find themselves
hopelessly outgunned and even
more vulnerable.”
The more proactive you are,
the better you can halt an attack.
And, according to Maddox, an
attack is almost guaranteed. Small
businesses make up 58 percent of
cyber-attack victims and, with
the average breach costing a US
manufacturer nearly $8 million
and taking on average nearly 200
days to identify a breach, this is
not a threat to be taken lightly.
With three out of every five
breached businesses forced to
shut down, manufacturers face a
choice — invest in safeguards to
prevent an attack from happening
or scramble to stop the bleeding
after the fact. And, unlike the
misguided myth, being proactive
isn’t as costly as you think.
“There is an enormous mis-
conception that cyber security
protection has to cost a fortune.
The truth is that it doesn’t; you
just need to be willing to allocate
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the right resources in advance of
a breach,” said Maddox. “We hear
far too often that cyber security
protection isn’t needed because
of cyber insurance policies. That
is a very reactive mindset though.
It’s only going to help you if you
experience a breach, but keep in
mind that it can’t help your
brand reputation or get back the
data that was exposed.”
You’ve put years, decades and
maybe generations of sweat equity
into making your business something
to be proud of — why throw that
all away?
“It’s about asking how much the
future of your business is worth,”
Maddox continued. “You don’t
want to be one of the businesses
that invest more money in their
annual coffee supply or their
cleaning services than they do on
cyber security and are then
surprised when they get targeted.
Inaction can cost you everything.
Invest in the right resources and
ask the right questions. We’re
ready to help you.”
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