With cyber security shifting from detection to decision-making and anticipation, the role of digital twin technology in strengthening an organisation's ability to respond and recover is now firmly in focus, says cyber defence company Snode.
The company says dealing effectively with threats requires an understanding of how attacks would realistically move through an environment and what the real impact would be.
It adds that to build resilience, organisations need to shift from periodic, reactive security to continuous, intelligence-led exposure management. This means understanding how an attacker would behave once inside an environment, prioritising the most exploitable risks, and automating where possible.
ITWeb Security Summit 2026
The goal is not more alerts or more tools, but clearer decisions, faster action and measurable risk reduction.
This is where Snode says its digital twin technology adds value – by modelling real-world attack paths and predicting potential impacts across IT, operational technology and cloud environments.
Speaking to ITWeb ahead of the company’s participation at the ITWeb Security Summit 2026 in Johannesburg, Mario Lovecchio, associate director of RevOps at Snode, said the intention is to empower organisations to prioritise critical risks and respond quickly, without relying on traditional security operations.
“Organisations are overwhelmed by complexity, fragmented tools, AI-supported attacks and a shortage of skilled people to operate them effectively. We believe the challenge lies in better decision-making. Security teams are flooded with alerts but lack the context to act on what truly matters," he said.
"At the summit, we want to engage with leaders who are rethinking how security should operate in this new environment. Our focus is on sharing practical approaches to reducing noise, prioritising real risk and enabling teams to move from reactive security to a more predictive, intelligence-led model.”
AI security threat
Snode believes AI is not only accelerating the speed and scale of attacks but also exposing a deeper issue: trying to defend using outdated security models.
“Most organisations are still operating security models that were never designed for continuous, adaptive threats. Attackers can now automate reconnaissance, identify vulnerabilities and chain exploits far faster than most teams can respond,” Lovecchio said.
He said this challenge is exacerbated by supply chains that have expanded the attack surface far beyond traditional boundaries.
“Organisations are now interconnected through cloud platforms, third-party services and digital ecosystems, which means risk is no longer contained within the enterprise. Overlay this with a global skills shortage, and the result is clear: teams are overwhelmed and traditional approaches to monitoring and response are no longer sustainable,” he added.
Rapid digitalisation – especially in cloud, fintech and mobile ecosystems – also expands the attack surface.
Snode says cyber security is becoming a core economic and operational requirement across Africa. As digital platforms support financial services, government systems and critical infrastructure, regulatory pressure is increasing around resilience, reporting and risk management.
To build resilience, organisations need to shift from periodic, reactive security to continuous, intelligence-led exposure management.
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