National Summit

In the digital age, practicing good cyber hygiene is essential to maintaining the security and integrity of personal and business data. However, in 2024, the lack of basic cyber hygiene practices will continue to be a major cause of cyber incidents. Cybercriminals exploit these vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access to sensitive information, steal data, and launch damaging cyber attacks. It's crucial for individuals and businesses to prioritize basic cyber hygiene practices, such as using strong passwords, regularly updating software, and backing up data. Additionally, individuals and businesses must educate themselves and their employees on cybersecurity best practices and the latest threats to stay ahead of the evolving threat landscape. By taking these proactive steps, individuals and businesses can protect themselves from cybercriminals who prey on poor cyber hygiene practices.

Bridging the gap between business and technology is not easy and requires discipline and balance between technology, people, and business. For so many organizations today, technology is the business. Technology needs to be understood as a critical enabler in every part of the organization from the front line to the back office. It creates new value by crunching data to deliver new insights, it spurs innovation, and it disrupts traditional business models.

For business and technology leaders alike, new actions and behavioral changes can help their organizations make this shift. CIOs and CISOs must take responsibility for problems, they should convey that when technology fails, many people typically share responsibility.

The terms "Artificial Intelligence" and "Advanced Machine Learning" are often thought of interchangeably. While there is a relationship between AI and AML, to say they are the same thing is an oversimplification and misclassification. Rather, one begets the other with AI being the basic principle upon which AML is developed.

As AI begins to mature and migrate away from purely advanced mathematical operations into decision making paradigms, AML steps forward as the predictive ability of machines to process vast quantities of data. As data and analytics becomes foundational to the way every business operates, AI and AML will become foundational capabilities.

GenAI, a revolutionary innovation in the world of artificial intelligence, has garnered immense attention and hype in recent years. Its story is one of rapid evolution and limitless potential, as it promises to transform industries, enhance decision-making processes, and revolutionize the way we interact with technology. However, amid the excitement, the role of cybersecurity becomes paramount. With GenAI's ever-expanding capabilities, the need for robust cybersecurity measures is essential to safeguard against potential risks and vulnerabilities. As we continue to unlock the possibilities of GenAI, the fusion of its incredible power with stringent cybersecurity practices will be the key to a safer and more promising future.

According to Gartner 79% of companies have experienced at least one cloud data breach during the shift to the mobile workforce. Remote work is here to stay, and the concept of securing a perimeter has essentially ended. Traditional application security measures are broken. The need to innovate faster and shift to cloud-native application architectures isn’t just driving complexity, it’s creating significant vulnerability blind spots also.

Under the thumb of the pandemic, enterprises and IT leaders had to look for tech solutions that were resilient and agile to empower the remote workforce. To sustain business continuity plans, organizations shifted workloads to the cloud. As much as cloud adoption offers flexibility and productivity, it also exposes organizations to cyber threats and data breaches. So the question remains if moving to the cloud is the right thing to do and if so how to protect it from the new risks given that most organizations believe that application security should be completely automated to keep pace with dynamic clouds and rapid software development practices.

CIOs play a crucial role in driving their organization's digital transformation efforts. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of digital technologies, and CIOs must continue to lead the way to stay competitive and meet the evolving needs of customers and employees. This requires a deep understanding of the organization's goals, processes, and IT infrastructure, as well as collaboration with other business leaders. By successfully leading digital transformation, CIOs can position their company for long-term success in a digital world.

How do CISOs get the most out of APIs while limiting the risk?  20 years ago the motives for hackers were website defacement and getting your name on all those defacements. That was the point of hacking. Now, it’s all about monetizing the data you can steal.

Just as cloud computing initially seeped into organizations under the cloak of shadow IT, application programming interface (API) adoption has often followed an organic, inexact, and unaudited path. IT leaders know they are benefiting from APIs, internal, via third parties, and often outwardly exposed. They just don’t know where they are, how much they support key services, and how they’re being used, or abused!

In this session we will discuss if APIs are meant to be exposed, and discuss if the startups API software companies are ready for the explosion.

A zero trust approach to security has been steadily gaining steam for the last several years. The importance of this approach reached a new level with the May 2021 White House executive order requiring federal agencies to shift to this architecture by fall 2024.

Ransomware continues to grow and clearly as remote work became the new norm, and e-commerce increased. Leaders need to establish a mature level of cyber resilience to better handle ransomware and other potential data breaches. Luckily, zero trust can play a critical part in that strategy as more and more businesses are realizing that to build customer trust they must establish zero tolerance for trust in their security strategy. Will Zero Tolerance for Trust redefine the state of security as government and private industry scrutinize their trusted relationships more, and re-evaluate the ‘who, what, why’ in 2023 more than any other year?

Let's explore the transformative power of generative AI technologies and their profound impact on the strategic vision of CIOs. This keynote delves into innovative applications of generative AI, ranging from creative content generation to advanced problem-solving, providing CIOs with insights on how to leverage these technologies to enhance operational efficiency, foster innovation, and navigate the evolving digital landscape. Attendees will gain a deep understanding of generative AI's potential, empowering them to drive their organizations towards a future where limitless possibilities meet strategic IT excellence.

Data management and analytics are critical areas for CIOs to focus on as organizations continue to generate large volumes of data. CIOs must implement effective data management strategies to ensure that data is accurate, secure, and easily accessible. This involves developing processes for collecting, storing, and analyzing data, as well as ensuring compliance with data privacy regulations. Additionally, CIOs must leverage analytics to gain insights from this data and inform decision-making. By using advanced analytics tools and techniques, CIOs can identify trends, patterns, and opportunities that can drive business growth and enhance the customer experience. Overall, effective data management and analytics are essential for CIOs to help their organizations make data-driven decisions and stay ahead of the competition.