It sounds great, democratic, empowering, and even inspiring. It suggests that every person in the organization, regardless of title or team, plays a part in keeping things safe. In theory, it promotes a culture of vigilance and shared accountability, where no one drops the ball because everyone is paying attention.
But like many corporate mantras, it starts to fall apart under pressure. Nice in theory, far messier in practice. Because when responsibility isn’t clearly assigned, when no one knows exactly what they own or what they’re expected to do in a critical moment, then who’s actually accountable?
In most cases, the answer is: no one. Tasks get duplicated or fall through the cracks. People hesitate to speak up. Warning signs go unnoticed. And when something goes wrong, finger-pointing becomes the default. That phrase becomes an easy way to sound aligned on values, without doing the hard work of creating real clarity.
Today, we’ll unpack why that matters, not just culturally but operationally, and how to fix it for real. Whether you’re running security at an 80-person startup or coordinating risk across a multinational enterprise, this is more than good intentions. It’s about setting up the systems, training, and ownership structures that turn vague ideals into actual resilience.
The Problem with Blurred Security Ownership
On scale, pretty phrases like “everyone’s responsible” often mean no one is accountable. It sounds good on paper, but in practice, vague ownership leads to real problems. Even though the physical security market hit $132.5 billion in 2022—and is expected to double by 2032—60% of companies still experienced a physical security breach in the past five years. That’s a pretty big disconnect. It shows that without clear accountability; good intentions don’t always turn into real protection.
The Real Cost of Shared-but-Unclear Responsibility
That lack of clear ownership doesn’t just open the door to security breaches, it also drives up the cost when things go wrong. In 2022, physical security failures led to more than $1 trillion in global losses (Investopedia). On the cyber side, the average cost of a data breach hit $4.88 million in 2024, up 10% from the year before (IBM). The common thread? Human error, which plays a role in up to 95% of breaches (ISPartners LLC). When roles and responsibilities are murky, mistakes are more likely, and more costly. So while it may feel collaborative to say “security is everyone’s job,” without clear lines of ownership, it often ends up being no one’s job. And that can cost far more than just money. It can cost trust.
Clarifying Roles: The Relay Race, Not Free-for-All
Think of it less like free-for-all and more like a relay race. In a good relay, each runner knows when to take off, where to pass the baton, and what stretch of track they own. The handoffs are precise, the roles are clear, and everyone understands that if they drop the baton, it slows down the whole team.
Security works the same way. It doesn’t mean one person or team does it all, but it does mean tasks are defined, documented, and communicated. Who manages access control? Who’s monitoring cyber threats? Who’s accountable in a breach? These answers vary by company, but the need for clarity is constant.
When roles are ambiguous, people assume someone else is handling it. That’s when incidents happen. But when security is treated with clear positions, not just buzzwords, organizations are better prepared to protect what matters most. Clarity doesn’t limit collaboration; it enables it.
Four Ways to Bring Clarity to Security Challenges
Define & Document Roles
Assuming people know what to do is a fast track to missed steps. Instead, make it easy: document who’s responsible for what. Who locks up? Who reports suspicious emails? Who approves access requests? A shared, simple doc goes a long way to keep everyone aligned.
Make Training Real & Regular
Security training doesn’t have to be boring or once a year. Mix in phishing tests, quick refreshers, or team drills. Cover the basics, and beyond: tailgating, lost devices, password hygiene. The goal is real-world habits, not checkbox compliance.
Foster a Learning Culture
Punishment kills reporting. Security leaders should guide, not police. Normalize asking questions and reporting mistakes. When employees feel safe admitting errors, organizations respond faster, and learn more from every incident.
Measure and Audit
Track what matters: incident rates, training completion, access changes. It helps you find patterns, fine-tune strategy, and justify budget with real data.
The Illusion of Coverage
One of the biggest risks in security isn’t what you miss, it’s what you think you’ve already covered. Busy dashboards. Long policy docs. Security awareness week. It all feels like momentum. But movement doesn’t equal progress. And visibility doesn’t equal ownership.
That’s the illusion of coverage: when everyone assumes security is “handled” because something is happening. You’ve got tools. You’ve got rules. People did the training. But under the surface, no one truly owns the outcome. There’s motion, but no traction.
These illusions are hard to detect, because they look like control. But appearances don’t stop breaches. Coordination does. Real engagement does. Clear ownership does. The fix? Pull back the curtain. Ask: “If this fails tomorrow, who’s on the hook?” If the answer isn’t immediate and specific, there’s a gap, and it needs closing.
Human-Centered Security
Security is everyone’s responsibility, when it’s well-defined, supported, and accountable. Without clarity, shared responsibility becomes confusion, duplication, and critical tasks falling through the cracks.
But when roles are clear, tools are in place, training is regular, and culture supports ownership, you get a system that works. People take the right actions at the right time, not out of obligation, but because they understand the why behind them.
That’s how you build a resilient organization. One where security is not just a policy, it’s part of how the company runs.
That’s exactly the approach we take at Human Risks. Our platform brings together everything an organization needs to manage security effectively, from risk assessments and incident reporting to task management and automated questionnaires. By centralizing these processes and creating clear workflows, we help teams stay accountable and proactive. Security shouldn’t be left to chance or scattered efforts. With the right structure, it becomes part of everyday operations: visible, consistent, and strong.
About Us
Human Risks is a comprehensive security risk management platform designed to help security teams drive effective engagement with asset owners from the ground up.
Across eight core modules, Human Risks helps organisations proactively embed security risk management into everyday business processes: providing clarity on risk accountability, streamlining collaboration, and supporting a dynamic, living risk assessment approach.
Interested in learning more? Connect with the team to see how we’re working with leading organisations to foster proactive security cultures and drive strategic engagement.
