What do you do if you suspect biases when evaluating Information Security professionals?

Review the assessment process and identify areas where bias could creep in. Biases can be linked to unconscious biases, stereotypes, favoritism or external pressures.

Be aware of common biases in InfoSec like confirmation bias (favouring candidates who confirm your existing beliefs) or affinity bias (being drawn to those similar to you). Reflect on your own background and experiences - are you unconsciously favouring a certain type of candidate?

In my view there will always be biases involved when a subjective view taken. To eliminate biases a multistep process with measurable metrices would be the ideal way.

If you suspect biases when evaluating Information Security professionals: 1. **Training**: Provide bias awareness training for evaluators. 2. **Standard Criteria**: Use objective, standardized criteria for evaluations. 3. **Diverse Panels**: Include diverse evaluators to reduce individual biases. 4. **Blind Reviews**: Implement blind reviews to remove identifying information. 5. **Feedback**: Collect feedback and calibrate results to spot biases. 6. **Regular Audits**: Conduct audits to identify and correct biases. 7. **Open Discussion**: Foster an environment for open discussion of biases. These steps help ensure a fair and unbiased evaluation process.

To improve the Information Security practices and ensure effectively addressing the needs, you should appreciate all feedbacks.

Make sure the evaluation criteria are objective and measurable. Use hard data like past performance, certifications, technical skills, etc

It is always good idea to share your thoughts , your process and facts and ask for feedback. Ask them to evaluate your process and if it is fair. Feedback gives opportunity to see diverse views.

Assemble an interview panel with diverse backgrounds and experiences. This helps ensure a well-rounded evaluation that considers different perspectives. Aim for a balanced panel in terms of gender, ethnicity, and technical expertise to mitigate bias based on these factors.

Define clear, objective criteria for evaluating Information Security professionals based on their skills, experience, certifications, and achievements. Involve multiple stakeholders in the evaluation process to provide diverse perspectives and reduce the impact of individual biases. Utilize data and metrics wherever possible to make informed decisions rather than relying solely on subjective judgments. Regularly review and update evaluation processes to ensure fairness and accuracy.

Develop a clear rubric outlining desired skills, experience, and qualifications. This objective criteria helps reduce bias based on personality or background.

encourage information security professionals to provide feedback on the assessment process. Their feedback can help identify areas where improvements are needed.

Foster a Culture of Self-Awareness and Continuous Improvement: Openly acknowledge that bias can occur even with the best intentions. If you catch yourself or a fellow evaluator making biased assumptions, challenge those assumptions and seek out objective evidence to support your assessments. Regularly debrief with the evaluation panel after the selection process is complete. Discuss any potential biases that may have surfaced and use those insights to refine your evaluation procedures for future hires. This ongoing dialogue will help your team become more self-aware and create a fairer evaluation process for all information security professionals.