Survivorship Bias In Tech
- Josef Mayrhofer
- 1 hour ago
- 2 min read
Survivorship bias makes us see only part of the picture. It happens when we focus on successes while ignoring failures that never reach the spotlight. This is a common issue in software engineering, where wins get all the attention, but the lessons from failures often go unnoticed.
In cybersecurity, system logs might show a long list of blocked attacks, making it seem like the security measures are solid. But some attacks never appear in the logs at all. If hackers use different, undetected methods, the system might not be as secure as it looks.
The same thing happens in performance testing. A test might show excellent results, and the team moves on, assuming everything is working well. But without digging deeper, they might miss that the system performed well only because of cached data or ignored errors. If these issues aren’t caught, they will eventually cause problems for real users.
Incident management is another area where survivorship bias slips in. Teams often rush to fix visible issues while ignoring near misses, problems that almost happened but didn’t. When only the apparent issues get attention, it creates a false sense of stability. It’s like fixing a leak in the ceiling while the foundation is weakening underneath.
Avoiding survivorship bias means challenging assumptions. Just because a system seems reliable doesn’t mean hidden flaws aren’t there. Encouraging different perspectives helps uncover blind spots, and teams that analyze successes and failures better understand their systems.
Thinking ahead matters as much. Instead of only reacting to problems after they appear, teams should look for risks before they turn into real issues.
Keep up the great work! Happy Performance Engineering!