Objectrisks

Objectrisks is a term used to describe risks associated with specific objects, assets, or data objects within an organization. The term is not universally standardized and may be used differently across industries. In risk management, objectrisks focus on hazards, failures, or vulnerabilities that arise in or from the object itself, its design, use, maintenance, or context of operation, rather than primarily from external systems.

Objectrisks can span physical objects, such as machinery and tools, where hazards include mechanical failure, wear, operator error, and maintenance gaps; and digital objects, including data records, software components, and sensors, where risks include data loss, corruption, unauthorized access, privacy breaches, and cyber vulnerabilities; blending these considerations, hybrid objects like smart devices carry both safety and cyber risks.

Risk identification and assessment begin with inventorying each object and evaluating its criticality, exposure, and potential impact. Likelihood and consequence are estimated for specific failure modes, with attention to how an incident in one object can cascade to others. Risk treatment involves selecting and implementing measures to reduce exposure, improve resilience, and prevent recurrence.

Mitigation strategies include design safeguards and fail-safes, regular maintenance and testing, configuration and change management, access controls, real-time monitoring, redundancy, and clear lifecycle procedures for procurement, deployment, and disposal. These actions aim to lower both the probability of adverse events and their potential consequences while integrating with broader risk management processes.

Objectrisks are related to operational risk, safety risk, and cybersecurity risk, and are addressed within many standards and frameworks that cover asset management, risk assessment, and resilience. Standards such as ISO 31000 and various sector-specific guidelines may inform objectrisk practices.