AN INVENTORY OF RISK

This site will discuss the threats that confront all contemporary organizations. And we will explore strategies for eliminating disaster potentials, where possible, and for minimizing the consequences of disaster potentials that cannot be eliminated.

For simplicity's sake, a disaster is defined as an interruption in the normal access to a valid set of data for an unacceptable period of time. Time to data is the metric by which the efficacy of any continuity strategy must be judged.

The challenges that planners must address with their continuity strategies span a broad spectrum of both localized and milieu-level threats:

	Damage to infrastructure, including telecommunications, electrical services, water, roads, etc., whether from sabotage or accidental disruption (the infamous backhoe), can shut a business down.
	Biohazards, whether the result of accidental or deliberate release, constitute a threat category for which planners must increasingly prepare an effective response.
	Explosions, whether due to accidental or deliberate causes, disrupt the operations of many organizations annually.
	Radioactivity, whether the result of nuclear power plant accidents or terrorist "dirty bomb" attacks, requires planning consideration.
	Malicious software, whether introduced by casual web surfing, email or by disgruntled employees or hackers, is a major source of downtime.
	According to experts, hackers begin visiting a server within minutes of its connection to the web. The motivation for the unwelcomed visit may be one of curiousity or malevolence: you need to prepare for the worst.
	Chemical spills, even miles away from your facility, can force evacuation.
	Civil disturbances can also lead to disaster conditions.