Information security functions have become far more important to their companies in the past decade, and that’s reflected in how the resources they’re allocated has grown and grown. Security Staffing and Budget Increases. MORE

Security will become increasingly important as industries seek to collaborate and use each other’s capabilities to enable new business models, with the banking sector leading the way MORE

It seems that the industry has reached a nearly unanimous conclusion about a key essential for tight information security -- people. You don't have to look at online job postings for long to recognize that most of the posted IT jobs relate to information security, with employers attempting to fill many such positions to shore up their cybersecurity posture. As an example, following a major security breach at the U.S. MORE

CESG technical director Jonathan Lawrence tells The Cyber Security Summit that information security professionals need to deliver security controls that help business users achieve their goals securely MORE

Organizations need to start thinking about information security as an element that enables businesses, facilitating increased competitive advantage that allows them to manage risk and protect all of the dollars that have been spent on creating a brand. This is the first step in securing a business. MORE

The way companies create, sell, and market products, and run the operations to do so, is increasingly based on the use of technology and digital information (see chart 1), and this trend of digitization will only continue more quickly across the next five years. MORE

Information security teams can spend all the money in their budget on fancy technology but it’s for naught if employees don’t use it. They should base their campaigns on the six root causes that are most likely to motivate employees to behave securely or not. MORE

Emphasize that information security applies to all agencies. Ideally, a cabinet meeting for all new secretaries should be held within three months of the inauguration to underscore that information security is essential for all agencies to complete their missions. Even secretaries whose agencies are not typically associated with either information security or IT need to be included. MORE

By helping to create a thriving, diverse and open information security community, (ISC)2 hopes to ensure a steep rise for the profession MORE

In fact, the security group is the only part of the infrastructure function where staffing levels are increasing. Blog Collaborate Across the Organization Information and Data Risk Management Information Technology IT Infrastructure MORE

But for now, chief information security officers (CISOs) should take three core lessons on board. CISOs also play a critical role in helping the senior M&A team understand how information risks associated with M&A can manifest as business risks with poor financial outcomes. MORE

Although the threat management tools and techniques available to chief information security officers (CISOs) have also improved, this still leaves much to do. However, by the time information security teams respond, attackers have most likely already caused a lot of damage. MORE

Recent cases have highlighted identity theft, the loss of personal financial data, and the disclosure of sensitive national security information. The executive in the hot seat for preventing these failures is the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO). MORE

Looking ahead to 2017, the Information Security Forum (ISF) , a global, independent information security body that focuses on cyber security and information risk management, forecasts businesses will face four key global security threats in 2017. As with previous years, 2016 saw no shortage of data breaches. MORE

Brexit will present some cyber security challenges – but it will be largely business as usual, say information security professionals MORE

The information security threat landscape is constantly evolving. To help you navigate the terrain, each year the Information Security Forum (ISF) — a nonprofit association that researches and analyzes security and risk management issues on behalf of its members — puts out its Threat Horizon report to provide members with a forward-looking view of the biggest security threats over a two-year period. MORE

The responsibilities of information security are rapidly changing as enterprises digitize. In this new context, information security is expected to take a strategic role by helping business leaders understand the security implications of their digital strategies; support a quicker pace of technology exploitation and experimentation; and govern a larger, more varied project portfolio. MORE

High demand and a limited pool of people with the right skills and experience make information security staffing a perennial challenge. Further complicating things is the fact that information security teams have not yet adapted to their changing role in digitizing companies. MORE

Chart 1 below can help with understanding the different types of risk assessment that information security teams need to conduct, and may also help explain the process, and the importance of it, to colleagues. MORE

Last year Travis Perkins implemented Splunk to help it to respond more quickly to security threats. Now, the business is looking into machine learning and a single customer view MORE

Red Owl Analytics is a highly regarded provider of a software solution that enables security and compliance teams to proactively tackle their most pressing problem-- insider risk. Guy finished his Army career as a special assistant to the Director of the National Security Agency. MORE

Small businesses run lean, and bad guys know that means security may be less than adequate. NIST researchers share ways that small businesses can protect their information MORE

The White House recently appointed retired Brigadier General Gregory J. Touhill as the US CISO, to bolster cybersecurity efforts in government MORE

10 Ways Digitalization is Upending Information Security. A recent survey of around two dozen heads of information security produced a useful overview of the nature of this problem and how some of the world’s most forward-thinking teams are responding. MORE

The former has opened up companies to new security risks while the latter has left some customers feeling uneasy about the privacy of their data. Poor security standards across an ecosystem can therefore have trickle down effects to your organization. MORE

The UK government has work to do to reduce complexity of security policies, according to the NAO MORE

The Information Security Profession – Where do I Start? I am often asked by individuals to provide advice or guidance on how to get started in the field of information security. Cyber InfoSec education infosec security awareness tools training MORE

Companies struggling to fill info sec roles should focus on finding people who can do what they need, not on qualifications, according to a security industry panel MORE

What is the role of information security professionals in helping organisations to ensure they are compliant with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) by 25 May 2018 MORE

Information security teams are busier than they’ve ever been and, although they have been given more funds to cope, there is still a great need to prioritize and focus on the risks that are most likely to harm their business. MORE

Information security is forever weaved into our daily lives. From the massive data breaches impacting Target, Yahoo and Anthem to IoT-powered DDoS attacks that take down substantial portions of the internet for extended periods of time, information security impacts everyone. MORE

Preventing confidential information leaking into the wrong hands has become high priority for every big company in the past decade. Information “breaches” have never been more costly to companies, or difficult to prevent. MORE

But for organizations still maturing their defensive measures, here’s what the transformation of cyber crime into an industry means for how you approach information security. Cyber crime has been commercialized. Infecting computers with ransomware or using an advanced persistent threat to pilfer intellectual property no longer requires deep technical knowledge. MORE

Information security is continually moving up business and board agendas, but information security professionals find it challenging to help business leaders to understand fully the cyber risks across increasingly digital businesses MORE

The 10th Cyber & Information Security Research (CISR) Conference, 7-9 April 2015, will be held at the Conference Center, 2nd Floor, Building 5200, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The conference brings together cyber security researchers, program managers, decision makers, security vendors, and practitioners to discuss many challenging tasks and novel solutions pertaining to cyber security. By Charles Hall. MORE

High-flying salaries in some unexpected places Image by Greg Gjerdingen Before moving to this top city for InfoSec pay, you might want to read the latest John Sanford novel, brace for a bitter cold winter and develop a taste for tater tot hot dish. MORE