Risk is defined as the potential gain or loss of something valuable. Many risks are easily identified as physical, financial, or strategic loss. Others, like emerging risks, are difficult to identify or quantify. They typically have a high degree of uncertainty and there tends to be no common approach. Emerging risks often start as a trend, or slight shift, that will ultimately have impact years down the road.
New risks often take years to mature and are very complicated in the process. As little as five years ago, cyber risk was considered an emerging risk. Today, it is better known, but arguably still emerging due to the highly uncertain, unpredictable, and rapidly changing nature of the risk.