• 04 Nov 2020

    Stanley Roberts – catching people misbehaving digitally too

    A few weeks ago, I promised my friend, Stanley Roberts (a well-known journalist who uses video to capture people doing dumb things) that I would post about a Facebook scam that he recently encountered. And then life got in the way...but here it is. Given the tie-in with what I do in my work, I thought it would be a good opportunity to share his example of how so many ...

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  • 15 Apr 2020

    Security awareness/training and security policy tips for tough times

    It's a tired subject at this point. Still, I still wanted to share some pieces that I've written on security awareness/training and security policies over the years that your business might benefit from to help get (keep) your arms around your remote workforce and overall information security program...no need to buy anything or hire anyone to help. The following are all you need to get rolling and/or fine-tune: Security Awareness ...

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  • 08 Oct 2014

    My trip to the 2014 ISC^2 Congress

    Last week I had the opportunity to attend the ISC2 Congress in Atlanta. It was held in conjunction with that physical security organization. When I arrived to walk the show floor, it was nothing but physical security vendors - as far as the eye could see. After about 45 minutes (sans program guide), I discovered where the information security vendors where. There were about five of them and they were ...

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  • 22 Aug 2014

    CISOs, lawyers, awareness training, and other infosec blunders you need to know about

    I've been super busy putting my twisted thoughts on paper...here are a few pieces you might enjoy:When your lawyer becomes your CISO  The compliance crutch holding up Corporate AmericaThe fallacy of information security awareness and trainingThe one skill worth mastering in ITQuantifying the disconnect between the business and securityThe critical item that’s missing from most IT security programsWhat's your one hot button security item? Top detractors of security oversight The funny ...

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  • 03 Mar 2014

    Interesting sights at #RSAC 2014

    I attended the RSA Conference last week...there was a lot of the same security nonsense (see my posts below) but a very good show nonetheless. You should attend next year, especially if you've never been. With 25,000+ attendees and more vendors than you can ever imagine in this space, it's a spectacle.Speaking of "vendors", one thing that struck me as interesting - what government employee was ballsy enough to use ...

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  • 04 Feb 2014

    The power of how we *think* about information security

    Here's a good piece on coping with stress - something all of us in IT know all too well.  One thing in particular caught my eye that meditation expert Jon Kabat-Zinn said - it's something that may help explain the common approach many people take to information security..He said:We may find ourselves resisting innovation and change and becoming overly protective of what we have built because we feel threatened by ...

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  • 28 Jan 2014

    My latest security content impacting everyone from CIOs to project managers to those who are “going green”

    I thought you might be interested in these recent information security articles and webcasts I've written and recorded:Information security project considerations for project managersThe information security basics your organization should already knowHow VARs can help customers securely discard e-waste Regulatory compliance requirements for security solutions providersKeeping resilientExtending HIPAA Compliance from Electronic Health Records to Document and Data TransmissionsInformation Technology and Business Continuity – Filling the gaps to protect your businessBe ...

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  • 21 Nov 2011

    Don’t turn a blind eye on the basics

    I'm all about shoring up the basics of Web security before throwing money at the situation. If you're interested in saving not only money but also time and effort, here are some new pieces I've written on Web security that you may be interested in: Explaining the why of Web application security Improving Web security by working with what you’ve got Not all Web vulnerability scans are created equal Why ...

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  • 21 Oct 2011

    Users making security decisions is your Achilles’ heel

    I recently came across some content in a book outlining the benefits of SSL. The author depicted a scenario where SSL is in place to help the user authenticate the server/site he's connecting to and if a certificate-related error popped up in the browser then the user would know that the site was malicious and (presumably) not continue on with the connection. This very situation is an example of how ...

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  • 21 Jul 2011

    Thomas Paine knew his infosec

    Here's a great infosec quote from statesman Thomas Paine:"Our greatest enemies, the ones we must fight most often, are within."This applies to both malicious insiders and ourselves as each of us certainly tend to get in our own way when it comes to making things happen with security....

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