The Reality Behind Security Control Failures—And How to Prevent Them

There’s a clear gap between expectation and reality when it comes to security controls. Despite deploying best-in-class security tools and building capable teams, many organizations discover the truth only after a breach: their controls weren’t working as expected. Think of changing a lightbulb—you turn it on to check if it works. Security controls rarely get the same validation. Instead, success criteria become “don’t break production,” which doesn’t actually test whether the security controls are effective. It’s not for lack of trying, but traditional methods—such as compliance audits and penetration tests—don’t fully answer the question, “Would we win?” if attacked. As a result, blind spots persist. Traditional Security Testing Falls Short Compliance audits focus on policy and process but rarely engage in operational assurance testing that confirms, “Does this actually work as expected?” Answering “Do you have antivirus software?” is very different from “How long does it take ... Read full article.