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Wolfgang Selzer

Co-Founder & CEO, myResilience GMBH

1

Tell us about your career in cybersecurity to date

My career started in software engineering, but I made my entry into cybersecurity in 2000 as Product Development Director at Nanoteq, the leading crypto development company in South Africa. Since then, I’ve held director positions at various businesses, most of which have been in South Africa. My roles covered service management, product development and SIEM solutions, as well as Servicing the DACH region in a reseller capacity.

 

My entrepreneurial journey started in 2009, when I established a new security company within the Exponant Group; I became the Strategic Partner for Splunk in South Africa. From there, I founded myResilience SA in 2016 and the German division in 2018.

2

What does Cyber Safety mean to you?

Organisational resilience is a key benefit to be gained from achieving cyber safety. Striving for this, businesses need to adopt an approach that measures cyber risks and impact across people, product and processes. The maturity of organisations’ systems, operations, and defences should all be considered in terms of their cyber safety; realigning to these points is key to the longevity of businesses regardless of sector, service, or how cybersecurity has been managed previously.

3

Why is Cyber Safety important to you and your organisation?

The cyber industry strives for a safe environment in the future. As a reseller of Managed Security Service (MSS) systems, my ambitions are no different. The journey toward cyber safety is integral to my organisation, as customers rely on us to keep them safe. Without doing this effectively, our business would fail.

4

What are the three biggest Cyber Safety challenges facing businesses today?

Emerging technologies have escalated the risk of successful breaches, ransomware and data loss. Businesses’ increasing reliance on the collection, management and protection of data means that, should a breach take place, the impact can be severe. Beyond the ins and outs of cybersecurity, attacks today can also have significant impact on the protection of the brand itself; reputation is everything in a world like cybersecurity.

5

What more can be done to support businesses with improving their Cyber Safety?

For businesses that currently believe cybersecurity compliance is enough to prevent inevitable breaches, adopting an MSS business model can greatly advance their protection. Equally, some organisations – particularly SMEs – still treat cybersecurity as the responsibility of IT departments, siloeing a key business operation.

 

Correcting this oversight by detailing cyber protocols to the C-Suite means safety will be incorporated into the decision-making process. By doing so, organisations will gain a far better understanding of their cyber safety sophistication and make more accurate decisions toward lowering risk in the future.

6

Why do you think businesses generally prioritise cybersecurity ‘compliance’ without striving to champion best practice and true Cyber Safety?

There are several reasons why cybersecurity compliance is commonplace over investment in true cyber safety. In a tight economic environment, the C-Suite rarely understands the importance of going beyond compliance with cybersecurity, meaning budget allocations can be limited. Because organisations recognise that attacks are inevitable, and that security has become a necessary evil, they can become complacent. This significant oversight will continue to cause substantial damage to businesses until their mindsets change.

7

How will online security continue to evolve in the years to come?

Three key technologies will likely underpin online security innovation in the coming years: artificial intelligence, the cloud, and quantum computing.

 

AI produces a vast array of automotive benefits when it comes to recognising and dealing with threats. However, this technology can be easily exploited to create new hacking methods and threat types to outsmart business defences. Cloud on the other hand will likely catalyse a greener and more efficient cybersecurity industry in terms of processing power and data expenditure, while quantum computing will increase the overall power of IT Systems delivery.

8

Which technology with the potential to improve Cyber Safety are you most excited about?

Artificial intelligence is evolving at such an unprecedented pace it’s hard not to be excited about it. We’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the capabilities of AI. I’m looking forward to seeing how our industry continues to leverage AI in the pursuit of cyber safety, be it through advanced threat protection, automated defence, or seamless risk communication between relevant departments.

9

Are there any other businesses you believe set the standard for Cyber Safety?

The SANS institute has long been a benefactor for increased cyber safety. Now it’s time for the Cyber Safety Force to take this mission further, by raising awareness of ineffective, compliance-based systems and how to realign toward tangible business safety regardless of sector, size or location.

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