Bridging the Gap: CEO and CISO Perspectives on Cybersecurity

Me: What if I tell you that your 7-million-dollar investment in Annual Cyber Budget, procuring classic XDR, DLP, CDN, and Zero Trust Solutions, can't guarantee protection against hacking? These solutions, while powerful, can be easily bypassed by a group of talented individuals willing to compromise your crown jewel intellectual property for the price of a cup of coffee and music.?

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CEO of an Insurance company: You sound like any other cyber vendor. Our CISO, CRO, and Red Team are well-versed in Regulatory Compliance, and we've taken all necessary steps by procuring top-tier Solutions from reputable sources like Gartner and Forester. We have world-class products with a strong track record.?

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Me: You've grasped my point. While you trust big names and brands, has your team battle-tested these products? Have they investigated companies that were hacked while using these solutions? Cybercriminals in the grey and black areas are advanced, with groundbreaking disruption techniques and Zero Day Capabilities. In this landscape, the margin of difference matters, and relying solely on L1 defense might leave you vulnerable.?

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CEO: What can I do, Smith? When we hire external advisors like you, we outsource our security tension. Tell us what you feel is required.?

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Me: I believe in being practical and realistic. I strongly suggest treating securing an infrastructure like discovering an unknown problem with potential for a significant impact. We need to continuously search for similar patterns globally, drawing lessons to avoid potential tragedies.?

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CEO: Smith, how can we do this??

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Me: Equip your CISOs to hunt for unknown disrupted risk patterns globally. Attend vertical-driven conferences on Hacking, Risk, Defense, Criminology, and Business. The more CISOs attend such conferences, sharing knowledge with peers and relating security evasions to infrastructure components, the better equipped they become.?

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CEO: Point taken, Smith. I don't mind sending my team and CISO on international tours if they can provide value to the business. I'll trust your evaluation to ensure there's no conflict of interest.?

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This was a conversation I once had with a CEO who failed to grasp the importance of upskilling in cyber security.??

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This is when I recalled meeting an inspiring personality, Dhillon Kannabhiran - the Founder and CEO of Hack In The Box (HITB) - at the InterSec Conference, who emphasized bridging C-level executives with security researchers through the medium of global conferences.?

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His ideas encouraged a broader perspective and better preparation to defend and achieve true resiliency towards infrastructure.?

In the ever-evolving landscape of cybersecurity, my conversation with the CEO also underscores the critical need for a paradigm shift. Trusting big names alone is no longer sufficient; it requires a proactive and practical approach. The solution lies in empowering CISOs to actively hunt for global risk patterns and fostering a culture of continuous learning that can be brought about by conferences.?