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Cyber safety : a systems thinking and systems theory approach to managing cyber security risks

dspace.mit.edu

This MIT thesis reframes cybersecurity not as a patching game but as a systems safety problem — borrowing accident-analysis models to expose the hidden structural failures that let breaches happen.

Systems ThinkingSystems Safety TheorySTAMP/STPARisk Management
Cyber safety : a systems thinking and systems theory approach to managing cyber security risks

Theory Briefing

  • An MIT thesis proposes applying Systems Safety accident-analysis models directly to cyber risk management frameworks.
  • Traditional cybersecurity focuses on individual vulnerabilities, but systems thinking reveals how organizational structures enable breaches.
  • By treating cyber incidents like industrial accidents, the model uncovers systemic causes rather than just proximate technical failures.