Top cyber security experts to address Security Summit

Cyber security in its old form has failed and information security professionals are engaged in an ongoing strategic war for control.

Amid increasingly audacious cyber attacks and dire warnings, the world's top cyber security experts are set to travel to SA in May this year, to address 500 of the country's key business leaders and information security professionals on the battle raging on the cyber front.

The key to winning the war, they say, is informed strategy, effective tactics and the new imperative to know your enemy.

Constant vigilance required

In an ever-changing environment, staying abreast of evolving threats and attack techniques requires constant vigilance. It's a game of chess or cat and mouse, and understanding the enemy and anticipating his next move is the new infosec top priority.

At the Security Summit, to be held at the Sandton Convention Centre from 7 to 9 May, 2013, the definitive gathering of security professionals, international and local information security analysts and experts will drill down into high-profile security failures, forecast the future of cyber security and outline the tactics needed to win the war.

In his keynote address, international investigative journalist and author Misha Glenny will uncover his findings on the cybercrime underworld. Based on extensive interviews with cyber criminals, cyber policemen and government strategists, Glenny's presentation will reveal the new cybercrime landscape.

Other top international speakers will include:

• Richard Bejtlich, chief security officer, Mandiant: Formulating an attack-focused security plan.
  
• Adam Ely, founder & COO, Bluebox: BYOD: The risks, rewards, and challenges.
  
• Runa Sandvik, developer, security researcher, and translation co-ordinator, The Tor Project: Internet censorship and the Tor Project.
  
• Vinod Vasudevan, COO, Paladion: Enterprise fraud: Are you battle ready?
  
• Ben Gatti, independent software hacker, and Robert Weiss, founder, Password Crackers: Cryptanalysis of the Enigma.
  
• Alexander Polyakov, chief technical officer, ERPScan: Breaking, forensicating and anti-forensicating SAP portal and J2EE engine.
  
• Francisco Artes, research director, NSS Labs: Cybercrime kill chain vs. Effectiveness of defence layers.

Informed local perspectives will be delivered by dozens of local experts including:

• Anthony Olivier, MD of Performanta Consulting & Mobile Security - Panel: An in-depth discussion of security implementations gone wrong.
  
• Craig Rosewarne, MD of Wolfpack and founder of ISG: Cyber threat combating initiatives in the pipeline.
  
• Dominic White, chief technology officer, SensePost: Offence-oriented defence.
  
• Beza Belayaeh, CEO and CIO, South African Centre for Information Security: Socially engineered Trojans.
  
• Johann van der Merwe, Global head of information security at De Beers Group: Integrating information security with world-class physical security.
  
• Vernon Fryer, chief technology security officer at Vodacom SA: DdoS, the silent thunder.

With six targeted tracks drilling down into strategy, business, technologies and tactics, the ITWeb Security Summit delivers insights targeted at the CEO, CIO, CISO, governance, risk and compliance professionals, information security managers and professionals, and continuity professionals.

The tracks will cover the themes: Defence in depth, Know your enemy, Security and compliance, Incident response and forensic approaches, C-level security update, New offensive techniques.

Events running alongside Security Summit include:

• Three workshops - 9 May. (1. Governance of information security; 2. Digital forensics; 3. Information security incident response.
  
• Two days of training by SANS - 9 and 10 May.
  
• Performanta hosts the Check Point, Websense and McAfee Executive Briefing Centre (EBC) - 9 May.
  
• The Security Summit exhibition - Prominent solutions providers will showcase and demo their products and services in the exhibition area, allowing delegates assess and compare new tools and solutions within the IT security space.

For more information, go to www.securitysummit.co.za.