Our third Star Trek series overlaps slightly with the end of our second one firmly supplanted in the mid-90s, as Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (DS9) took center stage and a Federation crew was assigned at a remote outpost to help the local race of Bajorans rebuild following a decades-long occupation and mistreatment by the Cardassians, one of the Alpha Quadrant powers.

This installment of the Star Trek series was unique in that instead of taking place on a starship like the first two series (and the fourth one does, but more to come on that in the next blog), DS9 is set on a space station that guards one of the first stable wormholes in the universe, leading to the Gamma Quadrant on the other side of the galaxy.

Commander (promoted to Captain later in the series) Benjamin Sisko and his Federation crew are tasked with working alongside Bajor—a planet that is perhaps one day interested in joining the Federation—to rebuild after a devastating decades-long occupation by Cardassia that stripped most of the planet and their territory of its resources.

So what does all of this have to do with cybersecurity? Just as a new employee starts at an organization with onboarding through various documents and tutorials, one of the most important is cybersecurity training and awareness. Why? So you don’t compromise your organization and open it up to a potential phishing scheme, ransomware attack, or data breach.

Culture, whether it’s in a sci-fi series based in the future or in today’s cybersecurity world, is vitally important, as we all know. Training can beat a bad culture in some instances. And in other instances, it could cost your organization a boat load of money if not done right. The FBI recently released that business email compromises (BECs) cost organizations nearly $2.4 billion in 2021. Yes, you read that correctly—$2.4 BILLION. RSA Conference features a ton of security awareness-related content, including a recent FBI webcast on increased awareness of cyberthreats abroad.

The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. This rings especially true in cybersecurity awareness and training. It takes a village and everyone to be on the same page to prevent malicious attacks. The same can be said of the DS9 crew. Newly assigned to a remote part of the quadrant and tasked with operating a foreign space station required special attention to detail and lengthy training.

Later in the series, DS9 does incorporate the use of a starship, as the Federation grants Sisko and his crew use of the USS Defiant to explore the Gamma Quadrant and fend off a threat known as the Dominion (a force made up of multiple races that don’t care for intruders coming into their space from the Alpha Quadrant). That adds another layer for Sisko and his crew as they navigate operating a space station as well as a starship at the same time.

Ultimately, the Dominion invades the Alpha Quadrant and plunges into war over the latter part of the series. Without giving away too many spoilers, Sisko and his crew are instrumental in that fight and in maintaining their freedom from being conquered by a foe from the other side of the galaxy. But it took everyone being on the same page through proper training, attention to detail, and awareness of their surroundings to be successful, just like a cybersecurity company requires and needs this from its employees. The importance of this cannot be overstated.

Note: This is part three of a seven-part series looking at the primary Star Trek franchise television series.

Part 1: To Boldly Go Where No One (or No Ransomware) Has Gone Before
Part 2: Star Trek: TNG Foreshadows Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning