The agendas for SECtember (September 26–30, Meydenbauer Center, Bellevue, Washington) and the second annual CxO Trust Summit, which will take place on September 27 as part of the larger conference, have been made public by the Cloud Security Alliance. The CSA is an organization dedicated to defining global standards, certifications, and best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment.
“Cloud computing has become the default IT platform, cloud security is now the foundation for cybersecurity, and cyber is a critical component of every country’s national security strategy,” said Jim Reavis, co-founder and CEO of the Cloud Security Alliance. “These realities put Cloud Security Alliance and our community of experts at the center of the industry on a global, national, and enterprise level. We have assembled a world-class roster of speakers at our SECtember conference in the heartland of the cloud industry and have structured a program for attendee engagement and networking. I look forward to a week of collaboration to help us all address our biggest cyber challenges and stay ahead of sophisticated threat actors.”
SECtember 2022 will include both a primary conference of leading experts from the industry and in-depth training on advanced cloud security, cloud auditing, and zero trust issues. Among the highlights of the conference will be:
- Our Cyber Future: The Consequences of Success – Speaker: Glenn S. Gerstell, Senior Advisor, Center for Strategic & International Studies. The conflict in Ukraine has brought to light the crucial importance of the internet, cloud computing, and the internet of things. What does this mean for the future of cyberspace? Will constant technical advancement and globalization result in a brighter future for cyberspace? Or do increased regulation, content control, and nationalist approaches to our digital lives follow from the very success of those factors and the ongoing malevolent use of cyberspace?
- Cyberware in the Age of Cloud – Speakers: Norma M. Krayem, Vice President and Chair, Van Scoyoc Associates Cybersecurity, Privacy & Digital Innovation Group; Bob Lord, Senior Technical Advisor, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA); Kathleen Moriarty, Chief Technology Officer, Center for Internet Security. The world’s continued reliance on IT infrastructures, which are increasingly supported by cloud services, has made it evident that any actual military action taken by one country against another will also involve cyberwarfare. This panel discusses what it means for public and private sector organizations and how we should be ready to protect critical infrastructure from cyberattacks.
- The CISO’s Corner – Featured CISOs: Phil Venables, CISO, Google Cloud; Tim McCreight, National Director, Market Development and Strategic Advisory, CGI. Tim McCreight will present his unique perspective on cloud computing in a later session based on his more than 40 years of operational experience in the security industry. Phil Venables will present his session on risk management and cloud security megatrends that drive cloud adoption and improve security for everyone.
CxO Trust Summit
In order to advance cloud and cybersecurity understanding, knowledge, and necessary solutions in response to organizational concerns, the CSA CxO Trust brings together a community of C-suite executives. Highlights from this year’s sessions would include:
- Making Your Board of Directors Cyber Security Leaders – Speaker: Jason Witty, CISO, USAA. Over the past three decades, the Chief Information Security Officer’s function has evolved significantly. Despite the fact that the role’s original responsibilities have not changed, many new opportunities call for CISOs to succeed as both business leaders and board advisers as well as risk managers, technical engineers, and people leaders. Jason Witty offers a distinctive viewpoint on how to balance these fluencies in order to succeed at the boardroom table and at the C-suite table.
- Threat Modeling: A Hands-On Table Top Exercise to Understand Cloud Based Attacks – This threat modeling tabletop exercise, which is being presented in collaboration with Security Innovations, would show how cloud apps and infrastructure are targeted. The current CSA Pandemic Eleven Top Threats will be identified by participants, and they will also learn how to harden cloud operations.
- Change Agent: CISA’s Shift to Private/Public Partnering – Bob Lord, Senior Technical Advisor, CISA. As someone who transitioned from industry to government, Mr. Lord will discuss CISA’s efforts to change its focus from a traditional public/private partnership to one focused on operational collaboration. He will also share his perspective on how we can all start thinking more about a ‘secure by design’ mindset as we build and maintain systems.
Attendees will have the opportunity to network with their peers on the Expo floor after going years without the ability to personally connect, which can be essential for bridging the skills gap that permeates the security business.
At the ‘Diversity in Security Luncheon,’ guests will hear from prominent industry insiders who represent a variety of backgrounds and who will share their experiences as we explore how to make the cloud security industry more inclusive, in addition to the welcome reception, happy hour, CSA Chapter Leaders Breakfast, and other networking opportunities.
