Five Trends at RSA Security Conference

The computer security industry is eating humble pie at this week’s RSA Security Conference in San Francisco. Amid continued cybersecurity break-ins and a growing threat landscape, there are five key IT security and data protection trends emerging at the conference.


The computer security industry is eating humble pie at this week’s RSA Security Conference in San Francisco. Amid continued cybersecurity break-ins and a growing threat landscape, here are five key IT security and data protection trends emerging at the conference.

1. About That Humble Pie: Amit Yoran, president of EMC Corp.’s RSA unit, says the IT security industry has failed because “organizations that are investing millions and millions of dollars in security” are “still getting compromised on a consistent basis,” according to an interview with The Wall Street Journal. In a separate interview, Yoran told Fortune that it’s time for “No More of the Same. Let’s do things differently; let’s think differently; let’s act differently. Because, what the security industry has been doing has not worked.”

2. Protecting Intellectual Property: Richard A. Clarke, the former special advisor on counter-terrorism and cybersecurity to three Presidents, issued a warning ahead of the conference— stating that cybersecurity must increasingly protect intellectual property. He alleged that cyberattacks from China continue to steal intellectual property from the U.S., and will ultimately erase the United States’ innovative edge in business. 

3. Cybersecurity Goes Vertical: While all industries are under attack, multiple vertical market organizations are pushing new cybersecurity recommendations. Just ahead of the conference, a list of 12 cybersecurity principles emerged from The Cybersecurity Task Force of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. The healthcare, financial services and manufacturing industries have also been developing a range of cybersecurity recommendations.

4. It’s About the People: Amid all the technical threats, most research still points to people—your own employees—as the single biggest IT security threat. Indeed, social engineering— phishing email, fraudulent phone calls and more—still trick employees into sharing personal and corporate information. Indeed, the 2013 Target hack likely started the moment a Target employee clicked on a phishing email, experts have stated.

5. Holistic Approaches Needed: Instead of betting on individual software and security companies, experts at the conference are telling attendees to take a more holistic approach to IT security. Figure out your overall threat landscape first, then mix, match and integrate the best third-party offerings into a total solution.

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