For technologists

Best Practices Q&A: Guidance about what directors need to hear from CISOs — from a board member

By Byron V. Acohido

CISOs can sometimes be their own worst enemy, especially when it comes to communicating with the board of directors.

Vanessa Pegueros knows this all too well. She serves on the board of several technology companies and also happens to be steeped in cyber risk governance.

I recently attended an IoActive-sponsored event in Seattle at which Pegueros gave a presentation titled: “Merging Cybersecurity, the Board & Executive Team”

Pegueros shed light on the land mines that enshroud cybersecurity presentations made at the board level. She noted that most board members are non-technical, especially when it comes to the intricate nuances of cybersecurity, and that their decision-making is primarily driven by concerns about revenue and costs.

Thus, presenting a sky-is-falling scenario to justify a fatter security budget, “does not resonate at the board level,” she said in her talk. “Board members must be very optimistic; they have to believe in the vision for the company. And to some extent, they don’t always deal with the reality of what the situation really is.

MY TAKE: Why email security desperately needs retooling in this post-Covid 19, GenAI era

By Byron V. Acohido

It’s a digital swindle as old as the internet itself, and yet, as the data tells us, the vast majority of security incidents are still rooted in the low-tech art of social engineering.

Related: AI makes scam email look real

Fresh evidence comes from Mimecast’s “The State of Email and Collaboration Security” 2024 report.

The London-based supplier of email security technology, surveyed 1,100 information technology and cybersecurity professionals worldwide and found:

•Human risk remains a massive exposure. Some 74 percent of cyber breaches are caused by human factors, including errors, stolen credentials, misuse of access privileges, or social engineering.

•New AI risks have lit a fire under IT teams. . Eight out of 10 of those polled expressed concerned about AI threats posed and 67 percent said AI-driven attacks will soon become the norm.

GUEST ESSAY: NIST’s Cybersecurity Framework update extends best practices to supply chain, AI

By Jeremy Swenson

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has updated their widely used Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) — a free respected landmark guidance document for reducing cybersecurity risk.

Related: More background on CSF

However, it’s important to note that most of the framework core has remained the same. Here are the core components the security community knows:

Govern (GV): Sets forth the strategic path and guidelines for managing cybersecurity risks, ensuring harmony with business goals and adherence to legal requirements and standards. This is the newest addition which was inferred before but is specifically illustrated to touch every aspect of the framework. It seeks to establish and monitor your company’s cybersecurity risk management strategy, expectations, and policy.

•Identify (ID): Entails cultivating a comprehensive organizational comprehension of managing cybersecurity risks to systems, assets, data, and capabilities.

LW ROUNDTABLE: Will the U.S. Senate keep citizens safe, vote to force China to divest TikTok?

By Byron V. Acohido

Congressional bi-partisanship these day seems nigh impossible.

Yet by a resounding vote of 352-65, the U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a bill that would ban TikTok unless its China-based owner, ByteDance Ltd., relinquishes its stake.

President Biden has said he will sign the bill into law, so its fate is now in the hands of the U.S. Senate.

I fervently hope the U.S. Senate does not torpedo this long overdue proactive step to protect its citizens and start shoring up America’s global stature.

Weaponizing social media

How did we get here? A big part of the problem is a poorly informed general populace. Mainstream news media gravitates to chasing the political antics of the moment. This tends to diffuse sober analysis of the countless examples of Russia, in particular, weaponizing social media to spread falsehoods, interfere in elections, target infrastructure and even radicalize youth.

GUEST ESSAY: Essential cyber hygiene practices all charities must embrace to protect their donors

By Zac Amos

Charities and nonprofits are particularly vulnerable to cybersecurity threats, primarily because they maintain personal and financial data, which are highly valuable to criminals.

Related: Hackers target UK charities

Here are six tips for establishing robust nonprofit cybersecurity measures to protect sensitive donor information and build a resilient organization.

•Assess risks. Creating a solid cybersecurity foundation begins with understanding the organization’s risks. Many nonprofits are exposed to potential daily threats and don’t even know it. A recent study found only 27% of charities undertook risk assessments in 2023 and only 11% said they reviewed risks posed by suppliers. These worrying statistics underscore the need to be more proactive in preventing security breaches.

•Keep software updated. Outdated software and operating systems are known risk factors in cybersecurity. Keeping these systems up to date and installing the latest security patches can help minimize the frequency and severity of data breaches among organizations. Investing in top-notch firewalls is also essential, as they serve as the first line of defense against external threats.

News alert: Chiral announces $3.8m funding round to advance nanomaterial chip manufacturing

Zurich, Switzerland, Feb. 27, 2024 — Chipmaking has become one of the world’s most critical technologies in the last two decades. The main driver of this explosive growth has been the continuous scaling of silicon technology (widely known as the Moore’s Law).

But these advances in silicon technology are slowing down, as we reach the physical limits of silicon. For this reason, the industry has been investing heavily in nanomaterials like carbon nanotube, graphene and TMDs, which are expected to enable chips with unprecedented functionality. However, making electronic devices with these extremely small materials at speed, with precision, and without compromising on quality has been a long-standing obstacle.

Nanotechnology company Chiral is today announcing a $3.8m funding round to address this challenge head on, innovating the way nanomaterials are integrated into devices. Its expertise in nanotechnology, automation, and high-precision robotics will be pivotal in the industry’s move beyond silicon to the next generation of electronics.

SHARED INTEL: Poll shows companies pursuing ‘Digital Trust’ reap benefits as laggards fall behind

By Byron V. Acohido

Achieving “digital trust” is not going terribly well globally.

Yet, more so than ever, infusing trustworthiness into modern-day digital services has become mission critical for most businesses. Now comes survey findings that could perhaps help to move things in the right direction.

According to DigiCert’s 2024 State of Digital Trust Survey results, released today, companies proactively pursuing digital trust are seeing boosts in revenue, innovation and productivity. Conversely, organizations lagging may be flirting with disaster.

“The gap between the leaders and the laggards is growing,” says Brian Trzupek, DigiCert’s senior vice president of product. “If you factor in where we are in the world today with things like IoT, quantum computing and generative AI, we could be heading for a huge trust crisis.”

DigiCert polled some 300 IT, cybersecurity and DevOps professionals across North America, Europe and APAC. I sat down with Trzupek and Mike Nelson, DigiCert’s Global Vice President of Digital Trust, to discuss the wider implications of the survey findings. My takeaways:

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The Last Watchdog

For technologists

Best Practices Q&A: Guidance about what directors need to hear from CISOs — from a board member

By Byron V. Acohido

MY TAKE: Why email security desperately needs retooling in this post-Covid 19, GenAI era

By Byron V. Acohido

GUEST ESSAY: NIST’s Cybersecurity Framework update extends best practices to supply chain, AI

By Jeremy Swenson

LW ROUNDTABLE: Will the U.S. Senate keep citizens safe, vote to force China to divest TikTok?

By Byron V. Acohido

GUEST ESSAY: Essential cyber hygiene practices all charities must embrace to protect their donors

By Zac Amos

News alert: Chiral announces $3.8m funding round to advance nanomaterial chip manufacturing

SHARED INTEL: Poll shows companies pursuing ‘Digital Trust’ reap benefits as laggards fall behind

By Byron V. Acohido