(ISC)2 to Present Government Information Security Leadership Awards
Earlier this year, President Barack Obama sounded a clarion call for increased national attention to cybersecurity threats. It could be that he's already funded and built a dangerously unstable artificially intelligent supercomputer to spy on everyone and keep us safe from terrorists and other bad things. More likely, he was simply attempting to draw attention to a clear and present danger that threatens our national well being. Or maybe he was just trying to get invited to (ISC)2's upcoming CyberSecureGov event — as a guest of honor.
The widely respected information security organization is holding its annual government security conference in Washington, D.C., May 14-15 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center. The conference will address both extant and impending threats from information security attacks, whether criminal or militaristic in nature, in the hopes of spurring legislative action. This year's theme of "From Zero to 60: Advancing the Cybersecurity Workforce" places special emphasis on the ever-present need to recruit more skilled IT pros in cybersecurity careers.
A major component of CyberSecureGov — to get back to our starting point of President Obama — is the Government Information Security Leadership Awards, or GISLA. (ISC)2 announced last week that it is actively seeking nominees to receive six major awards. The GISLA program, now in its 12th year, recognizes "the ongoing commitment of individuals whose initiatives, processes and projects have led to significant improvements in the security posture of a department, agency or the entire federal government."
See? Whether or not The Big O is actively angling to be invited to a black-tie shindig in his own town, you have to admit that he's got a fairly solid basis on which to be considered for an award. There are four individual awards, and two awards that recognize a team or group:
- Up and Coming Information Security Professional (Individual Award)
- Workforce Improvement (Individual Award)
- Technology Improvement (Individual Award)
- Process/Policy Improvement (Individual Award)
- Most Valuable Industry Partner (Team Award)
- Community Awareness (Team Award)
(ISC)2 executive Dan Waddell said in a statement to media that the awards recognize federal, state and local leaders who recognize the continual onslaught of cybersecurity attacks as an opportunity to agitate for change. "These are the people who are pushing forward to collaborate on and lead initiatives that will ultimately stabilize a very unstable environment and help to positively influence our interconnected world," Waddell said.
Nominations are being accepted through March 20. A panel of cybersecurity experts will review the nominees and choose the winners, who will be honored during CyberSecureGov. Additional details about each award are available online.
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