Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

Best of IEF 2015: Security and the weakest linkA look back at the 2015 Softchoice Innovation Executive Forum

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

Security is a topic that never gets old. It’s also one that gets scarier every day for IT leaders everywhere.

In fact, as businesses modernize for a new digital reality, more sophisticated threats are emerging. On top of this, users now expect more open, collaborative work environments, while consumers demand more personalized, integrated experiences. All of which put security on the line.

After hundreds of technology leaders gathered at multiple events for the Innovation Executive Forum in 2015, several important insights about this new world of security emerged.

Best of IEF: Security and the weakest link

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

You are the weakest link

No one opens an email attachment without first picking up the phone and making sure that person sent it.

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

People aren’t just the heart of IT success. They are also responsible for its biggest enemy: security breeches.

Which is why the IT leader in Chicago shared his enormous success with training his people to be weary of every single email attachment. While the example might seem extreme, it underlines the crucial truth at the heart of this discussion. People are the weakest link to every security regime.

Technology leaders would be naïve to think technology alone will be enough to fend off an attack. What is needed is a focus on culture and training.

IEF Chicago> Read the full report

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

Enter the shadow

We don’t want you to use us because you have to. We want you to use us because we are the best option.

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

IEF Minneapolis> Read the full report

Call it the consumerism effect, but your workers are expecting more seamless, easy ways to get their work done. And while many IT leaders might try and prevent this movement toward more user friendly third party apps, most modern thinkers know better.

As the IEF discussed at their meeting in Minneapolis, to stop shadow IT you have to adopt the tools of the enemy. Building user-centric solutions that are just as easy as the shadow competition is crucial. And sometimes, if that’s not possible, you need to consider embracing outside services. What matters is that IT manages to maintain credibility with workers, by always keeping their interests central. Otherwise the shadow will creep in and you will have no power to stop it.

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

Guardians of the brand

All it takes is one Tweet to set off a firestorm.

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

It’s bad enough when your network is breeched. But it’s potentially catastrophic these days with the speed in which the news will spread online.

This was a key lesson that surfaced at the IEF Atlanta event. The bottom line: IT leaders today need to recognize a data breech is no longer something that can be kept out of the public eye. Security, therefore, is central to a brand’s livelihood.

As serious as this is, there is a silver lining. IT leaders are using the heightened stakes to implement more robust, far-reaching security solutions than previously possible. A savvy IT leader will remind stakeholders of how much is on the line given the sophistication of today’s hackers.

IEF Atlanta> Read the full report

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

The “pink shirt” approach

No matter how much training, people simply don’t ‘get it’

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

That quote refers to the frustrations of one IEF leader in Dallas, discussing the futility of trying to get users to pick stronger passwords and be more cautious with email attachments.

But instead of doing the same old warnings, IEF leaders suggested it’s best to take a few more creative approaches. One of these involved making a user wear a pink shirt around the office if he/she ever is caught breeching security protocols, such as downloading attachments from unknown senders. The take away is simple: IT leaders need to think outside the box, and play to the realities of their user’s habits, in order to get them to change risky behaviors.

IEF Dallas> Read the full report

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

In cloud we trust

Is getting hacked better in the cloud?

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

Let’s assume you are going to be the next target of a hack. The question is: Is it better to be in the cloud or an on-premise only business? This was a question raised at the New York IEF, as one leader discussed the merits of having another party to point the finger at in case of a breech.

But there are far more compelling reasons to put your faith in the cloud, and start leveraging it for a more secure environment. Trusting the enormous experience of the provider (such as Microsoft) is one. And built in compliancy and regulation requirements is another.

IEF New York> Read the full report

Best of IEF 2015 | Security and the weakest link

Explore two more curated reports highlighting the best of IEF thought leadership from 2015.

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