Book cover of Cybersecurity: A Business Solution by Rob Arnold – an executive guide to managing cyber risk in small and medium businesses

Cybersecurity: A Business Solution

Experts agree and studies show that executive involvement is critical to managing cyber risk. But what exactly does that look like to the owners, board members and top managers of resource-constrained small and medium businesses?

This guide strips away the technical aspects and illustrates how to manage cyber risk as a business problem. It provides a step-by-step approach to managing the financial impact of cybersecurity. The strategy provides the knowledge your business leaders need to better engage with cybersecurity. The book also covers common pitfalls that lead to a false sense of security. And, to help offset the cost of higher security, it explains how business leaders can leverage investments in cybersecurity to capture market share and realize more profits.

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About the Author

Rob Arnold is a retired Senior Advisor for Cybersecurity and Risk Management to the National Risk Management Center, which is a division of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Among other projects, he spearheaded the establishment of the first National Critical Functions Risk Register to help senior government leaders prioritize and coordinate risk management objectives across the entire government ecosystem.

Prior to joining the National Risk Management Center, Mr. Arnold served as the CEO of Threat Sketch, a data and analytics firm specializing in solutions for large scale cyber risk management problems. He completed his graduate studies in information security at East Carolina University and is certified in risk and information systems control by ISACA.

He is the author of Cybersecurity: A Business Solution, a definitive guide to managing cyber risk in small organizations. Before joining the National Risk Management Center, he represented the interests of small organizations before Congress and through participation in key Homeland Security events. Mr. Arnold is a founding member of the ICT Supply Chain Task Force Executive Council. He served as the first chairman of the North Carolina Center for Cybersecurity and sat on advisory boards for the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Forsyth Technology Community College and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

Congressional Testimony

Rob Arnold addresses the House Small Business Committee on promoting greater information sharing for stronger cybersecurity

In this 2017 testimony before the U.S. House Committee on Small Business, Rob Arnold (CEO of Threat Sketch LLC) highlights critical cybersecurity challenges facing small and medium businesses (SMBs). He discusses data fragmentation across federal agencies, overuse of classification that limits actionable information, and the unique vulnerabilities of SMBs due to limited resources and talent competition.

Key points include the need for a centralized directory of cyber data-sharing initiatives, greater transparency in threat information, and reframing cybersecurity as an executive-level business imperative rather than just an IT issue. Arnold emphasizes how adversaries exploit SMB weaknesses and advocates for solutions like leveraging Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) for training and building trusted national networks.

This testimony underscores the importance of executive involvement in cyber risk management and practical steps to improve information sharing between federal agencies and small businesses.

NIST Advocacy

Rob Arnold promotes adoption of the NIST Cybersecurity Framework

In this video produced by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Rob Arnold explains the value of the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) as a flexible, risk-based approach to managing cybersecurity. Particularly suited for resource-constrained small and medium businesses, the framework helps executives prioritize cyber risks, align security efforts with business objectives, and improve overall resilience without requiring extensive technical expertise.

The NIST CSF provides actionable guidance for identifying, protecting, detecting, responding to, and recovering from cyber threats—making it an essential tool for business leaders seeking to treat cybersecurity as a manageable business risk rather than an overwhelming technical challenge.

Contact

Mr. Arnold is available for speaking engagements and enjoys hearing from his readers.

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