The technology around us is constantly changing, and cybersecurity practices are evolving to match these new innovations. As the cybersecurity landscape shifts to meet the needs presented by new technology, opportunities arise for cybersecurity professionals to step into new roles – an experience I recently underwent myself. I’ve recently shifted from McAfee’s Mobile and ISP Business Unit to our Enterprise Endpoint Engineering team, a transition that has given me the opportunity to leverage what I’ve learned in the industry and step forward as a leading woman in tech.
Through this process, I’ve seen first-hand how growth opportunities within the cybersecurity field are beneficial for both individuals and the future of the security industry as well. For example, my transition allows me to apply my past experience and knowledge to a new area of security. Previously, I specialized in engineering solutions that protected mobile, IoT, and smart home devices. However, with my transition into this new role, I am still protecting individual endpoint devices, but rather in a new type of environment — an organization’s network.
Just like the ever-growing number of IoT devices connecting to users’ home networks, endpoint devices are popping up everywhere in corporate networks these days. As we add more endpoint devices to corporate networks, there is a growing need to ensure their security. Endpoint security, or endpoint protection, are systems that protect computers and other devices on a network or in the cloud from security threats. End-user devices such as smartphones, laptops, tablets, and desktop PCs are all classified as endpoints, and these devices are all now rapidly connecting to an organization’s network with every employee, partner, and client that enters the building. That’s why it’s imperative companies prioritize a robust and agile endpoint security strategy so that all of their network users can connect with confidence. Similar to securing all the personal devices on a home network, it’s a sizable challenge to secure all corporate endpoints. And my new team, the McAfee Enterprise Endpoint Engineering group, is here to help with exactly that.
Leading consumer engineering taught me how to make security simple for a home user’s consumption. How to protect what matters to a user without them being experts on the threat landscape or security vulnerabilities, security breaches and campaigns around device, data, cloud and network. This is something I plan to bring to the new role. Leading a business unit focused on delivering security through mobile carriers and ISPs taught me the strength of bringing together an ecosystem both on technology and the channel to solve end users’ security needs in a holistic way. That ecosystem view is another that I bring to this role, besides leading engineering from the lens of growing the business.
This transition is not only exciting from a personal perspective but also because it is a testament to the progress that is being seen across the cybersecurity industry as a whole. There’s a lot to be said about the vast opportunities that the cybersecurity field has to offer, especially for women looking to build a career in the field. Cybercriminals and threat actors often come from diverse backgrounds. The wider the variety of people we have defending our networks, the better our chances of mitigating cyberthreats. From there, we’ll put ourselves in the best position possible to create change – not only within the industry but within the threat landscape as a whole.
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