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It’s one thing to claim leadership in cloud security; it’s another to have that leadership acknowledged by industry experts. That’s why we’re thrilled to announce our recent recognition by Frost & Sul… Read more on Cisco Blogs
Co-authored by Tejas Sheth, Sr. Security Specialist, Amazon Web Services – AISPL.
Risk-based Vulnerability Management (RBVM) represents a strategic approach to cyber security that focuses on… Read more on Cisco Blogs
By shifting from point-solutions to a cybersecurity platform approach, IT and security teams significantly improve their efficiency and security outcomes. Security Service Edge (SSE) projects are… Read more on Cisco Blogs
In a blog post last December, I said that the business and IT leaders with whom I meet always ask: How can I secure my highly distributed workforce, who gets more varied and decentralized all the… Read more on Cisco Blogs
Since the European Union (EU) signed the second version of the Network and Information Security (NIS2) Directive in December 2022, there has been a real frenzy all around Europe about it. NIS2 is now… Read more on Cisco Blogs
NIS2 compliance for industrial networks: Are you ready?
Cisco Live is the premier destination for Cisco customers and partners to gain knowledge and build community. Our teams work hard to deliver education and inspiration, ignite creativity, deliver practical know-how, and accelerate the connections that fuel your digital future.
The Cisco Secure team is excited to share our expertise to help power the strategies – and safety – of your organization.
In 2023, the threat landscape will evolve to one that sees attacks on every surface, from criminals who are opportunistic, yet laser-focused on their goal. The attacks themselves could be email-borne, directly targeted, socially based, or a mix of all three.
Criminals will target vulnerabilities, operational deficiencies, suppliers, and business partners, as a means of accomplishing their goals. They will use the target’s own environment and take advantage of existing people and technology problems, including alert fatigue and staffing shortages.
To face this reality and address the needs of organizations both large and small, Cisco will continue to focus on education and innovation in the areas of preventing insider threats, providing consistent and informed alerts, enabling actionable intelligence, and delivering solutions to implement a zero-trust security framework.
As the organization that pioneered networking, we are driven to secure every connection, providing end-to-end protection for users and devices across multiple clouds and networks with a seamless experience.
As our vision for the integrated Cisco Security Cloud evolves, we’re continuing to challenge existing models and unify security and networking, with foundational elements that execute on this vision. From verified push – which protects organizations from MFA-focused phishing attacks – to Wi-Fi Fingerprint, and Remembered Devices, the performance enhancements with Enterprise Single Sign-on and Cisco+ Secure Connect, we continue to meet our customers where they are, offering true zero trust, with frictionless experiences for the hybrid workforce.
We’re excited to celebrate the following innovations and updates announced at Cisco Live EMEA:
Finding the balance between usability and security is now easier than ever. With Risk-Based Authentication, users have the access they need, secured by real-time contextual signals. Organizations can increase security efficacy by dynamically adjusting authentication requirements based on risk levels and by enabling safer end-user behavior. Risk-based authentication now includes wi-fi fingerprint, remembered device, and verified push features, which work together to reduce risk while preserving user experience by only requesting additional interaction for suspicious logins or a change in risk.
Our Enterprise Ready Single Sign-on expands Duo SSO with three new capabilities to easily connect single sign-on to modern apps and empower end users. By adding major protocol support, improved admin tooling, and SSO on demand password resets, organizations enable easier and more secure access from anywhere.
Cisco SD-WAN customers can now enjoy all the benefits of a turnkey, single-vendor SASE solution that brings together industry-leading networking with security: Cisco+ Secure Connect. This new integration gives Cisco SD-WAN (powered by Viptela) customers fast, secure private application and internet access, enabling them to deliver a secure experience, anywhere work happens.
We are also announcing the introduction of industry-first Business Risk Observability, an enhancement of our Full-Stack Observability application security solution. Available through Cisco Secure Application, which is integrated into Cisco AppDynamics, it provides a business risk scoring solution which brings together Kenna Risk Meter score distribution and Business Transactions from Cisco AppDynamics and integrates with Panoptica for API security and Talos for threat intelligence.
The initial findings from our first Cybersecurity Readiness Index reveal that while technology to devices is widely adopted, more progress is needed to protect identity, networks and applications. The report assessed the preparedness of companies around the world to safeguard against cyber threats in the current environment. See our key findings and security readiness trends, with the full report launching in the coming weeks.
As we navigate 2023, we will continue to face uncertainties and challenges. We are fully committed to our customers and partners in the journey to provide security resilience, supporting a frictionless user experience, and solutions threat intelligence that work to continually minimize risk.
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The use of unmanaged and IoT devices in enterprises is growing exponentially, and will account for 55.7 billion connected devices by the end of 2025. A critical concern is deploying IoT devices without requisite security controls.
While these numbers are numbing, their reality is undeniable. 90% of customers believe digitization has accelerated the importance placed upon security. The World Economic Forum now lists cybersecurity failure as a critical threat, and estimates a gap of more than 3 million security experts worldwide, hindering secure deployments at scale. Furthermore, 83% of IoT-based transactions happen over plaintext channels and not SSL, making them especially risky.
Securing an IoT device can be achieved either through securing the IoT device itself, or hardening the network it accesses. Securing devices can be cumbersome, requiring complex manufacturing partnerships and increasing unit prices, thereby reducing adoption. On the other hand, securing the network is always desirable as it helps secure access, encrypt traffic, and ease management.
Being a leader in both security and networking, Cisco continues to bring security closer to networking, providing the network with built-in security, and enabling the network to act both as sensor and as an enforcer. The convergence of security and networking leverages the network’s intelligence and visibility to enable more-informed decisions on policy and threats.
Cisco uniquely integrates security and networking, for instance we recently integrated Cisco Secure Firewall to operate on Cisco Catalyst 9000 Series switches. Additionally, Secure Firewall can be deployed in a containerized form, on-premises and in clouds. Cisco Secure Firewall classifies traffic and protects applications while stopping exploitation of vulnerable systems. Additionally, we offer Identity Services Engine with AI Endpoint Analytics to passively identify IoT devices and apply segmentation policies. Furthermore, Cisco offers management flexibility by integrating with Cisco Defense Orchestrator and DNA Center and with existing customer tools like SIEMs and XDRs.
Let’s look at three use cases where the addition of Secure Firewall capability on Catalyst 9000 Series switches solves real world problems:
Use case 1: Securing the Smart Building: This solution is ideal to secure smart buildings, converging various IoT systems into a single IT-managed network infrastructure. Smart buildings lower the operational and energy costs. Smarter building systems, however, pose serious security risks as these include so many unmanaged devices such as window shades, lighting, tailored HVAC, and more. One of the methods to secure smart buildings is to control access to avoid manipulation of sensors. Such control is attained with a networking switch with enhanced firewall capability. The firewall ensures granular segmentation, directing policies for traffic generated out of IoT devices, providing access to the right users. This integration also brings security closer to endpoints, making policy orchestration simpler.
Use Case 2: Centrally manage isolated IoT network clusters: IoT devices which communicate with each other in the same subnet typically cannot be routed, which is a challenge. By default, most IoT networks are configured in the same subnet, making it difficult to manage them centrally. Administrators are forced to physically connect to the IoT network to manage and collect telemetry. Furthermore, IoT vendors often charge hefty amounts to update IP addresses of devices. Cisco Secure Firewall, hosted on the Catalyst switch, solves this problem and not only inspects traffic from the IoT network but also translates duplicate IoT IP addresses to unique global IP addresses using NAT for centralized management of isolated IoT networks.
Use Case 3: Securely encrypt IoT traffic passing through a shared IT network: At airports, for example, multiple vendors manage unique systems such as baggage, air quality, biometric access control, etc, which share a common network. IoT traffic is usually in plain text, making it susceptible to packet sniffing, eavesdropping, man-in-the-middle attacks, and other such exploits. The IPSec capability on Cisco Secure Firewall encrypts IoT traffic, securing data transfer and reducing risk.
Cisco’s IoT initiatives join the once disconnected worlds of IT and IoT, unifying networking and security. For further details refer to the At-A Glance and see how and an Australian oil company, Ampol, fortified its retail IoT with Cisco Secure!
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For Cisco engineers working on Duo, having a remote-first workplace has helped them reach life goals, connect with colleagues around the world, and be intentional communicators. We understand that working remotely can be an adjustment — that’s why we’ve compiled the 10 parts of remote work that surprised our team members most and their advice for navigating the nuances. If you’re interested in being part of a remote-first workplace, check out our open positions.
Senior Engineering Leader David Rines has worked remotely for the past seven years. He’s found that Cisco’s approach to distributed teams has “enabled us to pick up the right talent, and not necessarily local talent. We are moving towards a global, follow the sun environment,” he said.
One of the aspects Rines appreciates most of this structure is getting “a widely varied set of perspectives and experiences that help build a more reliable, more robust product, which is why we’re here.”
Another benefit to having colleagues across the globe is the sharing of recipes, a perk Senior Site Reliability Engineer Bernard Ting particularly enjoys. Proactively communicating with colleagues virtually “helps you to form bonds with people from other teams. You can always learn something new about cultures elsewhere. I talk to people about food and so I’m always gathering recipes from people from all over the world,” Ting shared.
While some may fear that working remotely could lead to feelings of isolation and loneliness, a different camaraderie can flourish in the structure of our distributed teams. With colleagues across time zones, “there’s always someone there who you can reach out to help solve your problem,” Rines said.
Collaboration hours are another way Site Reliability Engineering Manager Jaya Sistla has cultivated virtual community and problem-solving. These hours are blocked off for team members to talk about what they’re working on. “The main thing is being able to ask for help so you don’t go into the rabbit hole debugging things,” Sistla said.
Ting points out that working in a distributed model allows you to really engage in virtual events and conversations. Given that the team mainly communicates through online chat, Ting has found that “forces you to see everyone as equally approachable, which has made me more comfortable reaching out to people from anywhere in the world.”
For folks sharing an office, collaboration can happen through casual chats over coffee. When facing a challenge, you can ask your neighbor for support. While ideally virtual communication could have a similar cadence and spontaneity, the logistics of remote and distributed work require intentionality and being proactive in connecting with colleagues as people and as co-workers.
When Ting first started working remotely, he felt that every meeting needed to be formal and have a business objective. By sharing his feelings with his manager, he was reassured that “socializing is a very important part of teamwork, because if you don’t have a good relationship with your colleagues you’re not going to be able to have healthy discussions, healthy conflict or be able to critique each other when the situation arises.”
Since that conversation, Ting has been more proactive about catching up with colleagues, which can include sharing a coffee over video chat. Duo’s “coffee roulette” formalizes the process as every month, employees who opt in can be randomly paired up for a quick half-hour chat focused exclusively on socializing. Ting has found being proactive about socializing virtually helpful. “It’s made me more intentional with my time and really treasure the social experience you can get,” he said.
Some folks may be concerned that without a manager observing their efforts and work ethic day in and day out, it may be harder to recognize accomplishments and challenges. Ting found that within his team “when you work on projects and in your one-on-ones with your managers, they’re always very intentional about learning what you’ve been doing and seeing what your progress is like on certain projects. I’ve been asked, ‘How do you think you can improve? What are some of the things you’ve been doing outside of the team work?’”
To cultivate cross-team collaboration and education, there are thoughtfully planned virtual lunch and learns. “We schedule training sessions and common meetings at times that are flexible for everyone. If it has to be repeated, we do it so people can comfortably attend rather than stretching themselves and attending at odd hours,” Sistla said.
For Software Engineer Nick Aspinall, an important and fun part of working remotely is keeping in touch with virtual messaging. One unique perk has been getting to create and customize emojis with team members including a few of himself in “various ridiculous states,” he said.
Connecting with colleagues on themed channels focused on personal and professional interests from coffee to pets “makes it really cool because you can meet people across different teams and still get some of the feeling of rubbing elbows that you get when you’re in the office,” Aspinall said. Participating in these virtual conversations boosts morale while also providing an endless supply of cute animal pics.
Given the multi-faceted nature of our work and the importance of consistent information sharing, having different communication channels and formats to communicate data with varying degrees of complexity is vital. Having information readily accessible, accurate and updated is particularly necessary in a field like cybersecurity.
Senior Software Engineer Mario Lopez finds that the variety of information sources contributes to an easeful remote working experience. For instance, for complex architecture decisions or detailing, Duo’s Wiki is the best source.
Software Engineer Hanna Fernandez has benefited from chat channels dedicated to design and engineering topics to “see what everyone’s up to and what thoughts people have,” she said. Sista pointed out these are great places to ask questions and open up dialogue to solve problems.
Our culture is “video-on,” meaning that it is preferred that during video meetings, as much as possible, attendees have their cameras on. Lopez loves this because “you get a bit of that personal human element.”
“We’re all people behind these screens. You definitely get some of people’s personality through text, but you get it more when you actually see them. It’s infectious when you see someone smiling. You’ve got to smile back,” he shared (while we both smiled).
When Fernandez started at Cisco, she was advised to schedule individual meetings with everyone she would be working with on every team that she joined. That suggestion is one she’s applied even virtually.
“It’s a great strategy because I already know that my team is super talented and very smart, but this way I also get to know them as humans beyond their roles,” Fernandez said. Fernandez also finds it important to check in with co-workers and ask how they’re feeling and how their time off was. “I know a lot of people hate small talk, but it’s not just small talk. I’m genuinely interested in how my co-workers are doing.”
One of Ting’s biggest goals was buying his first house in the countryside outside of London. By working remotely, Ting has flexibility in his location which allowed him to achieve his goal of buying a house and settling down with his partner, while giving their dogs the space they need to be dogs.
When transitioning from fully remote to hybrid, it’s important to recognize that there will be some shifts to get accustomed to. As the structures of remote, distributed and hybrid work evolve, it’s important to stay flexible and notice what’s possible through multiple modalities of team building. Many teams have enjoyed in-person gatherings and connecting through virtual lunches and team games when remote.
Fernandez has had multiple roles with multiple structures at Cisco. As an intern, she was fully in person and shared desk space with other interns who collaborated on full stack engineering. While working in finance IT, Fernandez was hybrid and many of her colleagues were distributed among multiple offices. The pandemic began while she was in a DevOps role, forcing her to maintain boundaries around her work time while working fully remotely. In her current role working on Duo, Fernandez is completely remote but advocates for in-person events if possible, because “humans are social creatures who want to see each other’s faces in real life once in a while.”
For Aspinall, “when we did come back to the office, there was a bit of an adjustment period where you were overstimulated from the office.” He also wanted to ensure team members who were 100% remote were fully included. Now he sees that while half his team is fully remote and the other half is hybrid, “that doesn’t stop anyone from doing anything. All of our meetings feel the same. They’re all seamless.”
If you’re interested in joining our team from wherever you are in the world, check out our open roles.
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Cisco supports the Open Cybersecurity Schema Framework and is a launch partner of AWS Security Lake
The Cisco Secure Technical Alliance supports the open ecosystem and AWS is a valued technology alliance partner, with integrations across the Cisco Secure portfolio, including SecureX, Secure Firewall, Secure Cloud Analytics, Duo, Umbrella, Web Security Appliance, Secure Workload, Secure Endpoint, Identity Services Engine, and more.
We are proud to be a launch partner of AWS Security Lake, which allows customers to build a security data lake from integrated cloud and on-premises data sources as well as from their private applications. With support for the Open Cybersecurity Schema Framework (OCSF) standard, Security Lake reduces the complexity and costs for customers to make their security solutions data accessible to address a variety of security use cases such as threat detection, investigation, and incident response. Security Lake helps organizations aggregate, manage, and derive value from log and event data in the cloud and on-premises to give security teams greater visibility across their organizations.
With Security Lake, customers can use the security and analytics solutions of their choice to simply query that data in place or ingest the OCSF-compliant data to address further use cases. Security Lake helps customers optimize security log data retention by optimizing the partitioning of data to improve performance and reduce costs. Now, analysts and engineers can easily build and use a centralized security data lake to improve the protection of workloads, applications, and data.
Cisco Secure Firewall serves as an organization’s centralized source of security information. It uses advanced threat detection to flag and act on malicious ingress, egress, and east-west traffic while its logging capabilities store information on events, threats, and anomalies. By integrating Secure Firewall with AWS Security Lake, through Secure Firewall Management Center, organizations will be able to store firewall logs in a structured and scalable manner.
The eNcore client provides a way to tap into message-oriented protocol to stream events and host profile information from the Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center. The eNcore client can request event and host profile data from a Management Center, and intrusion event data only from a managed device. The eNcore application initiates the data stream by submitting request messages, which specify the data to be sent, and then controls the message flow from the Management Center or managed device after streaming begins.
These messages are mapped to OCSF Network Activity events using a series of transformations embedded in the eNcore code base, acting as both author and mapper personas in the OCSF schema workflow. Once validated with an internal OCSF schema the messages are then written to two sources, first a local JSON formatted file in a configurable directory path, and second compressed parquet files partitioned by event hour in the S3 Amazon Security Lake source bucket. The S3 directories contain the formatted log are crawled hourly and the results are stored in an AWS Security Lake database. From there you can get a visual of the schema definitions extracted by the AWS Glue Crawler, identify fieldnames, data types, and other metadata associated with your network activity events. Event logs can also be queried using Amazon Athena to visualize log data.
To utilize the eNcore client with AWS Security Lake, first go to the Cisco public GitHub repository for Firepower eNcore, OCSF branch.
Download and run the cloud formation script eNcoreCloudFormation.yaml.
The Cloud Formation script will prompt for additional fields needed in the creation process, they are as follows:
Cidr Block: IP Address range for the provisioned client, defaults to the range shown below
Instance Type: The ec2 instance size, defaults to t2.medium
KeyName A pem key file that will permit access to the instance
AmazonSecurityLakeBucketForCiscoURI: The S3 location of your Data Lake S3 container.
FMC IP: IP or Domain Name of the Cisco Secure Firewall Mangement Portal
After the Cloud Formation setup is complete it can take anywhere from 3-5 minutes to provision resources in your environment, the cloud formation console provides a detailed view of all the resources generated from the cloud formation script as shown below.
Once the ec2 instance for the eNcore client is ready, we need to whitelist the client IP address in our Secure Firewall Server and generate a certificate file for secure endpoint communication.
In the Secure Firewall Dashboard, navigate to Search->eStreamer, to find the allow list of Client IP Addresses that are permitted to receive data, click Add and supply the Client IP Address that was provisioned for our ec2 instance. You will also be asked to supply a password, click Save to create a secure certificate file for your new ec2 instance.
Download the Secure Certificate you just created, and copy it to the /encore directory in your ec2 instance.
Use CloudShell or SSH from your ec2 instance, navigate to the /encore directory and run the command bash encore.sh test
You will be prompted for the certificate password, once that is entered you should see a Successful Communication message as shown below.
Run the command bash encore.sh foreground
This will begin the data relay and ingestion process. We can then navigate to the S3 Amazon Security Lake bucket we configured earlier, to see OCSF compliant logs formatted in gzip parquet files in a time-based directory structure. Additionally, a local representation of logs is available under /encore/data/* that can be used to validate log file creation.
Amazon Security Lake then runs a crawler task every hour to parse and consume the logs files in the target s3 directory, after which we can view the results in Athena Query.
More information on how to configure and tune the encore eStreamer client can be found on our official website, this includes details on how filter certain event types to focus your data retention policy, and guidelines for performance and other detailed configuration settings.
You can participate in the AWS Security Lake public preview. For more information, please visit the Product Page and review the User Guide.
While you are at AWS re:Invent, go see a demo video of the Security Lake integrations in the Cisco Booth #2411, from November 29 to December 2, 2022, at the Cloud, Network and User Security with Duo demo station.
Learn more about Cisco and AWS on the Cisco Secure Technical Alliance website for AWS.
Thank you to Seyed Khadem-Djahaghi, who spend long hours working with the beta to develop this integration and is the primary for developer of eNore.
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Going beyond the hype, passwordless authentication is now a reality. Cisco Duo’s passwordless authentication is now generally available across all Duo Editions.
“Cisco Duo simplifies the passwordless journey for organizations that want to implement phishing-resistant authentication and adopt a zero trust security strategy.”
—Jack Poller, Senior Analyst, ESG
We received tremendous participation and feedback during our public preview, and we are now excited to bring this capability to our customers and prospects.
“Over the last few years, we have increased our password complexities and required 2FA wherever possible. With this approach, employees had more password lock outs, password fatigue, and forgetting their longer passwords due to password rotations. With Duo Passwordless, we are excited to introduce this feature to our employees to keep our password complexities in place and leverage different Biometric options whether that is using their mobile device, Windows Hello, or a provided FIDO security key.
The Duo Push for passwordless authentication feature is simple and easy and introduces a more pleasant experience overall. Using Duo’s device insight and application policies, we are able to leverage and verify the security of the mobile devices before the device is allowed to be used. To top it off, Duo is connected to our SIEM and our InfoSec team is able to review detailed logs and setup alerts to be able to keep everything secure.”
—Vice President of IT, Banking and Financial Services Customer
As with any new technology, getting to a completely passwordless state will be a journey for many organizations. We see customers typically starting their passwordless journey with web-based applications that support modern authentication. To that effect, Duo’s passwordless authentication is enabled through Duo Single Sign-On (SSO) for federated applications. Customers can choose to integrate their existing SAML Identity provider such as Microsoft (ADFS, Azure), Okta or Ping Identity; or choose to use Duo SSO (Available across all Duo editions).
“Password management is a challenging proposition for many enterprises, especially in light of BYOD and ever increasing sophistication of phishing schemes. Cisco aims to simplify the process with its Duo passwordless authentication that offers out-of-box integrations with popular single sign-on solutions.”
—Will Townsend, Vice President & Principal Analyst, Networking & Security, Moor Insights & Strategy
Duo offers a flexible choice of passwordless authentication options to meet the needs of businesses and their use cases. This includes:
No matter which authentication option you choose, it is secure and inherently multi-factor authentication. We are eliminating the need for the weak knowledge factor (something you know – passwords) which are shared during authentication and can be easily compromised. Instead, we are relying on stronger factors, which are the inherence factor (something you are – biometrics) and possession factor (something you have – a registered device). A user completes this authentication in a single gesture without having to remember a complex string of characters. This significantly improves the user experience and mitigates the risk of stolen credentials and man-in-the-middle (MiTM) attacks.
FIDO2 authentication is regarded as phishing-resistant authentication because it:
Using Duo with FIDO2 authenticators enables organizations to enforce phishing-resistant MFA in their environment. It also complies with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance issued earlier this year in a memo titled “Moving the U.S. Government Towards Zero Trust Cybersecurity Principles”. The memo specifically requires agencies to use phishing-resistant authentication method.
We understand that getting the IT infrastructure ready to support FIDO2 can be expensive and is typically a long-term project for organizations. In addition, deploying and managing 3rd party security keys creates IT overhead that some organizations are not able to undertake immediately.
Alternatively, using Duo Push for passwordless authentication is an easy, cost effective to get started on a passwordless journey for many organizations, without compromising on security.
We have incorporated security into the login workflow to bind the browser session and the device being used. So, organizations get the same benefits of eliminating use of stolen credentials and mitigation of phishing attacks. To learn more about passwordless authentication with Duo Push, check out our post: Available Now! Passwordless Authentication Is Just a Tap Away.
In addition to going passwordless, many organizations are looking to implement zero trust access in their IT environment. This environment typically is a mix of modern and legacy applications, meaning passwordless cannot be universally adopted. At least not until all applications can support modern authentication.
Additionally, organizations need to support a broad range of use cases to allow access from both managed and unmanaged (personal or 3rd party contractor) devices. And IT security teams need visibility into these devices and the ability to enforce compliance to meet the organization’s security policies such as ensuring that the operating system (OS) and web browser versions are up to date. The importance of verifying device posture at the time of authentication is emphasized in the guidance provided by OMB’s zero trust memorandum – “authorization systems should work to incorporate at least one device-level signal alongside identity information about the authenticated user.”
Duo can help organizations adopt a zero trust security model by enforcing strong user authentication across the board either through passwordless authentication where applicable or thought password + MFA where necessary, while providing a consistent user experience. Further, with capabilities such as device trust and granular adaptive policies, and with our vision for Continuous Trusted Access, organizations get a trusted security partner they can rely on for implementing zero trust access in their environment.
To learn more, check out the eBook – Passwordless: The Future of Authentication, which outlines a 5-step path to get started. And watch the passwordless product demo in this on-demand webinar .
Many of our customers have already begun their passwordless journey. If you are looking to get started as well, sign-up for a free trial and reach out to our amazing representatives.
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Self-awareness goes a long way in determining your next professional steps. While job searching, it’s critical to identify how to leverage your transferable skills and network, while also evaluating what environmental factors of work and work culture matter to you most. Learn what it’s like to work at Cisco and the top 10 ways to suss out a workplace that suits your needs from leaders at Cisco Secure, Cisco Talos and Duo Security.
First things first. Emily Reid, the newly appointed director of employee experience at Cisco Secure who came from Duo Security, advises, “Do your own research to see how the company and their employees describe the culture publicly — on the company’s website and through other sites, articles and resources. For tech companies specifically I always think, “What else do you have beyond the ping-pong table?”’
The interview process is the next key opportunity to find out what culture is like beyond amenities. To gain multiple perspectives, Reid recommends asking about company culture in every interview you have.
The question at the top of Reid’s list: Do you have programs and resources to support the development and success of your employees? “I want to know how a company will be investing in my career growth and if I will feel welcome and included as part of the team. Seeing what a company chooses to center and highlight when describing their culture is usually very telling,” she said.
Interning at a company is another way to get firsthand knowledge and can lead to full-time employment. “several former interns are now people leaders managing their own teams — and their own interns — coming full circle,” Reid said.
Knowing that there is safety and support in bringing your whole self to work is vital. What policies, programs and initiatives are in place that demonstrate an organization’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging?
Cisco’s ongoing commitments to social justice and pay parity include twelve action steps as part of Cisco’s Social Justice Blueprint. Cultivating a conscious culture includes on-going dialogue, programs and events meant to increase equality. Employee Resource Organizations and mentorship programs provide more opportunities to build community and share knowledge, resources and advocacy.
What environment allows you to do your best work? Also consider what perks and processes an employer offers to enhance flexibility and adaptability. During the pandemic, Duo and Cisco transitioned all global events, training and professional development workshops to fully virtual. As in person options resumed following the pandemic, all events are designed to ensure an inclusive experience no matter where you’re joining from.
“We don’t want to go back to a world where people not based in an office feel like they are getting a lesser experience,” Reid said.
Considering how to make programs and information accessible to employees regardless of where they work is also important to Sammi Seaman, team lead of employee experience at Cisco Talos. She’s currently spearheading a new hire program that is “more inclusive of folks whether they’re office based, remote or somewhere across the world.”
It’s essential to consider how you want your life and work to intersect, particularly as hybrid work becomes more popular. How important is paid time off, flexible work options or a consistent structure?
Cisco Secure offers “Days for Me,” days off for employees to decompress and do something to fill their cups. Monthly “Focus Days” are days without meetings, so employees can prioritize the projects that need attention.
Curran recalls one candidate who, despite multiple offers from competitors, chose Cisco Secure because of the flexible work environment: “This person has a young child and felt that the “Days for Me” and flexibility to work from home in a hybrid situation would work best for his career long-term.”
As Reid’s team helps lead the transition to hybrid work, the book Out of Office: The Big Problem and Bigger Promise of Working From Home by Charlie Warzel and Anne Helen Petersen has been inspiring. The book “does an amazing job of sharing a vision for an inclusive future that empowers employees to be successful and have a ‘work/life balance’ that truly works,” Reid said.
Currently Cisco Secure offers a hybrid model while many employees still work remotely. In terms of maintaining accessibility through this transition, Marketing Specialist Julie Kramer advocated for more accessibility and saw changes at Cisco as a result.
“Webex pre-COVID didn’t have any closed captioning. So, another deaf person and I reached out and closed captioning and the transcript option got added,” Kramer shared.
Kramer prefers to have high-quality and frequently the same interpreters who “know the terminology for my job, marketing and technology. In business, the security and marketing industry can really talk fast, so you need a high-quality interpreter that can keep up and one that is qualified and certified,” she said.
Consider what pace of your specific role and within an industry is needed for you to feel engaged without overwhelmed. While different roles within the same organization and industry may run at different paces, it’s important to tune into what might be expected on your potential new team.
Seaman finds that the fast pace of cybersecurity can be “delightful and challenging. There’s a lot of fast-paced pivoting that happens, which makes for an interesting workplace because two days are never the same,” she said.
Do you prefer a hierarchical structure, or one that is more flat? Are you most effective and fulfilled riding solo, or while consistently connecting with coworkers? Does contributing your ideas make you feel empowered?
At Cisco Secure, there is space to join conversations. “No matter where you sit in the company, you have a voice and can speak up and collaborate and self-organize on a project. It feels like a bunch of really hard working, humble, smart people who are trying to solve problems together,” said Manager of Duo’s Global Knowledge and Communities Team Kelly Davenport.
To enhance communication and knowledge among distributed teams, Seaman started a dialogue series called “The More You Know.” Questions include: What do you do? How do you do it? How can that help other parts of Cisco Talos? The conversations lead to future collaboration and resource sharing.
Do you want to grow professionally and increase your skills and knowledge? A culture of teaching and learning within an organization can help hone and expand your skills and connections.
Lead of Strategic Business Intelligence Ashlee Benge finds the security world “very dynamic. You really can never stop learning. Within Cisco Talos, the people around me are such smart, dedicated people that there’s really a lot that you can gain from just being involved in the group as a whole.”
For Seaman, who didn’t come from a technical background, Cisco Talos offered opportunities to expand her technical knowledge, including from colleagues. “Coming into Cisco Talos, people are like, “Here, let me teach you. You can totally do this. Just because you didn’t know how to do it doesn’t mean you can’t learn. Let’s go,” Seaman shared. Seaman’s colleagues have also learned from her expertise in information and knowledge management given her background as a librarian.
More formally, the Learning and Development team recently launched a comprehensive talent development program with enablement resources and support for people leaders. Aspects include: “really thoughtful templates for employees to use with their manager to talk through career goals, development areas, and to define an actionable investment plan. These resources are fueling great career conversations, strong alignment, and thoughtful development plans,” Reid said.
Do you want to refine your skills within your wheelhouse? Or are you driven to try new tasks and potentially change roles within your next organization?
Benge, whose background is in computational astrophysics, has found her interests shift from technical security research to business strategy and data science. At Cisco Talos, she’s been involved in everything from detection research and threat hunting, to community outreach, conference talks and traveling to support sales engagements. Currently, she’s helping to lead threat hunting in Ukraine.
“My leaders have always made it very clear that if there’s an interest, it’s okay to pursue it and it doesn’t have to necessarily be within the scope of my role. Having that freedom to pursue interests within the industry has been really engaging,” Benge said.
In addition to company values and mission statements, leaders and employees contribute to an organization’s culture every day. If you want to enhance your company’s culture, participate.
“Feedback on what employees want to see is crucial,” Reid said. “The easiest way to contribute to developing culture and a positive employee experience in your workplace is to add to what’s already happening! Culture takes participation and ownership from all employees.”
Reid shared that in performance reviews at Cisco, “‘Team Impact” is equally as important as “Results.” Contributing positively to company culture should contribute to performance reviews and promotion justification,” she said.
To learn more about Cisco’s company culture and how you can contribute to it, check out our open roles.
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Over her 25-year-plus career, Saleema Syed has seen the information security industry from a variety of vantage points, all while championing women in technology. Syed worked as director of business systems and data management for Duo Security before rising to vice president of information technology. Later, after Duo was acquired by Cisco, she transitioned to new roles within the larger organization and now heads up operations for Webex Marketing. In this position Syed brings structure across different functions of marketing including brand, events and technology while also serving as chief operating officer for Chief Marketing Officer Aruna Ravichandran.
“I fell in love with the culture, the kindness, the heart of this company,” Syed said.
Recently, she shared her passion for problem solving and inclusion with the Duo Blog, along with the advice she gives mentees navigating their own career paths.
Saleema Syed: I like chaos and I love putting a method to the madness. With marketing we have to react to the market, react to the business, react internally. What energizes me is there’s never a dull day and there is always this ability to bring some overall end to end process.
I love running towards a burning car and figuring out how to put it out. I love change. I know change is the only constant and rather than running away from it, I thrive in it. I like to look at it and ask, “What can we do to break it down and figure out what we need to do?”
My brain works in terms of boxes and flows and charts and spreadsheets so when I look at something I’m like, “Okay, what is a box? What is a process? How do I untangle it?” I like sitting in the discomfort and understanding what to do to get out of it.
Saleema Syed: There are three things I always keep in mind when I look at what I’m doing and where I want to be. One is, at the core of it, does it fill my cup of empathy and allow me to be true to who I am in how I treat people or how I build a team?
The second thing is, will I have the opportunity to influence and impact the people on the team or my family? How do I show myself to my daughter who is growing and seeing how to become who she is as a career person?
The third thing is, is it something new and am I learning something? Continuous learning is a huge part of who I am, so that drives me to get out of my comfort zone constantly.
When I’m changing jobs people usually say, “You’ve set up this team, you’re so comfortable. Now all you have to do is sit back and execute.” And my answer is, “That’s exactly why I am moving.”
If I am comfortable I’m not learning, and I don’t know if I’m adding any more value than I’ve set up. That means it’s time for me to move on and elevate somebody. What I’m doing is sending the elevator down to somebody on the team to grow.
That’s why I’ve had people who work for me for many years follow me through multiple organizations, which as a leader has been my pinnacle of what I call my success. Success is not my role; it is how many people I have impacted and influenced.
Saleema Syed: I keep going back to Duo because working at that organization and meeting those people defined me as a human being. One of the strategic pillars of that organization is to be kinder than necessary.
However complicated the work challenges are, those around me must be aligned with what my integral values are and who I am. They have to have empathy and kindness in their heart. If that is not there, no matter how much I love solving challenges and know I can solve them, I’m not going to go for it. I’ve been extremely lucky at Duo, Cisco and Webex that I’ve been around those kinds of people.
If you look at Webex, I love the core of what we are, the journey we are on, the inclusivity. We are not just selling Webex messaging or other products. At the heart of it we are looking at how we are influencing people and things around us by making sure that there is inclusivity in the collaboration tools that we are launching.
Saleema Syed: My leadership style is pretty simple: nobody works for me; people work with me. I lead with making sure that people know this is the problem you’re trying to solve, here is the context of what we are trying to do. Now, let’s figure out how we solve it. That is something that has helped my team be part of the problem solving that I love to do.
When I interview people my first questions are, “What does the job bring to you? How would this job fill your cup?” That throws people off every time. You can teach any technology, you can teach any skill set, but if you don’t have the basic passion, the attitude to be able to do this job, then everything else can just go out the door.
Saleema Syed: I have a very diverse background. I am an Indian by birth and grew up in the Middle East. When I went into engineering, finished my education and started my career, one of the things I realized was that as a woman of color, I always wanted to apply for positions that I was fully qualified for. I wanted to make sure I knew everything about the job because a very big fear was being asked a question in the interview I didn’t know. LinkedIn’s Gender Insights Report found that women apply for 20% fewer jobs than men despite similar job search behaviors. That has been a very challenging mental barrier for me to break.
Trey Boynton, who was at Duo and now she’s leading Cisco in a beautiful journey of diversity as the senior director of inclusion and collaboration strategy always said, “We have to have that bicycle lane on the road, whether it is for females, whether it is for people of color or any LGBTQIA+ community members. That is how we get people to bring that confidence in to learn, grow and then they can merge easily.”
“Passion is a part of who I am and is contributing to my growth.” – Saleema Syed
Whatever I faced as I was growing up, whether it was my dark skin, whether it was my accent, whether it was, “Oh, you’re way too passionate” has been some of the feedback that I’ve gotten. In my career if I’m told I’m way too passionate I turn that around and say, “Passion is a part of who I am and is contributing to my growth.”
Saleema Syed: Within Webex, within Cisco, I try to be part of anything that I can do in terms of giving back to the community. I’m definitely a big proponent of women in technology. In the local Dallas area I run a program by myself and go into schools and advocate for girls in STEM. Cisco is amazing in how it gives us time to volunteer. I love that educating kids is part of my journey of giving back. That’s the generation you can influence.
How do we enable children and women to be more open to technology and being part of the technology field? Let’s look at the percentage of diversity in the technology field and be aware of it. It’s not only about the diversity numbers, but are we bringing in candidates at the leadership level and giving them not just a seat at the table but a voice at the table, too?
You also have to talk about what you do and with passion and energy because if you don’t, people get intimidated. If you can influence one person who comes from an underrepresented community, imagine what you are doing, not just for that person, but for his household, for his family, for his extended community. I have a lot more to do, but as I get into the next decade of my life and my career, that is something that is a huge focus for me.
Saleema Syed: First and foremost it’s very important to spend time and understand the business and the products in whatever industry you’re going into. It is key to your growth. Especially if it’s a security industry, take time to understand the products, the technology or the function that you’re trying to get into. Contextual understanding and product understanding are extremely important.
The second piece is to keep learning. Cisco is amazing in trying to help you learn and support you financially to be able to do it. I went back and got my executive MBA four years ago. Give yourself a goal of learning a new something, whether it is a new function, new technology or new leadership skill.
The third piece is to create a spreadsheet of where you want to be in two years. Put that out there and then work back just like you would do a project plan. Work back month by month, quarter by quarter. What are the skill sets you need to learn to get there?
The last part is: Do the job you want versus the job you are in. Of course, you have to do the job you are in, but do the job you want to get to. Don’t wait for a title, don’t wait for a promotion to act. No. What do you want to be? Show that to your leaders and yourself. The title will come, money will come, everything will come, but am I doing the job that I want and enjoy and I want to get to?
To learn more about Webex, Cisco and Duo Security and how you can apply your passion, advocacy and problem solving to make a difference in cybersecurity, browse our open roles.
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To consumers, the Internet of Things might bring to mind a smart fridge that lets you know when to buy more eggs, or the ability to control your home’s lighting and temperature remotely through your phone.
But for cybersecurity professionals, internet-connected medical devices are more likely to be top-of-mind.
Not only is the Internet of Medical Things, or IoMT, surging — with the global market projected to reach $160 billion by 2027, according to Emergen Research — the stakes can be quite high, and sometimes even matters of life or death.
The risk to the individual patients is very small, experts caution, noting bad actors are far more likely to disrupt hospital operations, use unsecure devices to access other parts of the network or hold machines and data hostage for ransom.
“When people ask me, ’Should I be worried?’ I tell them no, and here’s why,” said Matthew Clapham, a veteran product cybersecurity specialist. “In the medical space, every single time I’ve probed areas that could potentially compromise patient safety, I’ve always been impressed with what I’ve found.”
That doesn’t mean the risk is zero, noted Christos Sarris, a longtime information security analyst. He shared an anecdote in Cisco Secure’s recent e-book, “Building Security Resilience,” about finding malware on an intensive care unit device that compromised a pump used to deliver precise doses of medicine.
Luckily, the threat, which was included in a vendor-provided patch, was caught during testing.
“The self-validation was fine,” Sarris said in a follow-up interview. “The vendor’s technicians signed off on it. So we only found this usual behavior because we tested the system for several days before returning it to use.”
But because such testing protocols take valuable equipment out of service and soak up the attention of often-stretched IT teams, they’re not the norm everywhere, he added.
Sarris and Clapham were among several security experts we spoke to for a deeper dive into the challenges of IoT medical device security and top-line strategies for protecting patients and hospitals.
Connected medical devices are becoming so integral to modern health care that a single hospital room might have 20 of them, Penn Medicine’s Dan Costantino noted in Healthcare IT News.
Sarris, who is currently an information security manager at Sainsbury’s, outlined some of the challenges this reality presents for hospital IT teams.
Health care IT teams are responsible for devices made by a multiplicity of vendors — including large, well-known brands, cheaper off-brand vendors, and small manufacturers of highly speciality instruments, he said. That’s a lot to keep up with, and teams don’t always have direct access to operating systems, patching and security testing, and instead are reliant on vendors to provide necessary updates and maintenance.
“Even today, you will rarely see proper security testing on these devices,” he said. “The biggest challenge is the environment. It’s not tens, it’s hundreds of devices. And each device is designed for a specific purpose. It has its own operating system, its own operational needs and so forth. So it’s very, very difficult — the IT teams can’t know everything.”
Cisco Advisory CISO Wolfgang Goerlich noted that one unique challenge for securing medical devices is that they often can’t be patched or replaced. Capital outlays are high and devices might be kept in service for a decade or more.
“So we effectively have a small window of time — which can be measured in hours or years, depending on how fortunate we are — where a device is not vulnerable to any known attacks,” he said. “And then, when they do become vulnerable, we have a long-tailed window of vulnerability.”
Or, as Clapham summed it up, “The bits are going to break down much faster than the iron.”
The Food and Drug Administration is taking the issue seriously, however, and actively working to improve how security risks are addressed throughout a device’s life cycle, as well as to mandate better disclosure of vulnerabilities when they are discovered.
“FDA seeks to require that devices have the capability to be updated and patched in a timely manner; that premarket submissions to FDA include evidence demonstrating the capability from a design and architecture perspective for device updating and patching… and that device firms publicly disclose when they learn of a cybersecurity vulnerability so users know when a device they use may be vulnerable and to provide direction to customers to reduce their risk,” Kevin Fu, acting director of medical device security at the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health explained to explained to MedTech Dive last year.
For hospitals and other health care providers, improving the security posture of connected devices boils down to a few key, and somewhat obvious, things: attention to network security, attention to other fundamentals like a zero-trust security framework more broadly, and investing in the necessary staffing and time do to the work right, Goerlich said.
“If everything is properly segmented, the risk of any of these devices being vulnerable and exploited goes way, way down,” he said. “But getting to that point is a journey.”
Sarris agrees, noting many hospitals have flat networks — that is, they reduce the cost and effort needed to administer them by keeping everything connected in a single domain or subdomain. Isolating these critical and potentially vulnerable devices from the rest of the network improves security, but increases the complexity and costs of oversight, including for things like providing remote access to vendors so they can provide support.
“It’s important to connect these devices into a network that’s specifically designed around the challenges they present,” Sarris said. “You may not have security control on the devices themselves, but you can have security controls around them. You can use micro segmentation, you can use network monitoring, et cetera. Some of these systems, they’re handling a lot of sensitive information and they don’t even support the encryption of data in transit — it can really be all over the place.”
The COVID-19 pandemic put a lot of financial pressure on health systems, Goerlich noted. During the virus’ peaks, many non-emergency procedures were delayed or canceled, hitting hospitals’ bottom lines pretty hard over several years. This put even greater pressure on already strained cybersecurity budgets at a time of increasing needs.
“Again, devices have time as a security property,” Goerlich said, “which means we’ve got two years of vulnerabilities that may not have been addressed. And which also probably means we’re going to try to push the lifecycle of that equipment out and try to maintain it for two more years.”
Clapham, who previously served as director of cybersecurity for software and the cloud at GE Healthcare, said device manufacturers are working hard to ensure new devices are as secure as they can be when they’re first rolled out and when new features are added through software updates.
“When you’re adding new functionality that might need to talk to a central service somewhere, either locally or in the cloud, that could have implications for security — so that’s where we go in and do our due diligence,” he said.
The revolution that needs to happen is one of mindset, Clapham said. Companies are waking up to the new reality of not just making a well-functioning device that has to last for over a decade, but of making a software suite to support the device that will need to be updated and have new features added over that long lifespan.
This should include adding additional headroom and flexibility in the hardware, he said. While it adds to costs on the front end, it will add longevity as software is updated over time. (Imagine the computer you bought in 2007 trying to run the operating system you have now.)
“Ultimately, customers should expect a secure device, but they should also expect to pay for the additional overhead it will take to make sure that device stays secure over time,” he said. “And manufacturers need to plan for upgradability and the ability to swap out components with minimal downtime.”
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When contemplating a career change within a different industry, it can be challenging to know where to start. As the world continues to change, many people are wondering how to transition into cybersecurity without experience. Business leaders at Cisco Secure and Duo Security who changed careers, along with recruiting professionals, provided insights for prospective candidates curious about the cybersecurity and tech industries. Learn their top 10 tips for getting a job in cybersecurity.
If passion, innovation, kindness and growth are on your list, Cisco Secure is worth checking out. When Kelly Davenport, manager of the Global Knowledge and Communities team, first connected with folks at Duo, she was “amazed at how nice and excited everyone seemed. I almost thought it seemed too good to be true. But then, when I started working here I realized everyone here really is that nice and smart and good at what they do. I was waiting for that to change, but it’s for real.”
Cisco Secure Talent Acquisition Lead Jeff Edwards shares, “Our senior level folks want fulfilling work. The work we’re doing and products we’re putting out are exciting, new and cutting edge. This is the stuff that’s going to change how we work in the future.”
For those looking to get into cybersecurity with no experience, Edwards suggests, “Pay attention to the jobs posted on cybersecurity career pages and the skills they’re asking for. That lets you know how long a process your career change may take. If you’re switching careers into tech it’s all out there to be able to discern, “Hey, where do I need to focus my efforts to put me in contention for these roles?”’
Cisco Women in Cybersecurity recently hosted a virtual session, Career Journeys Are Not Always a Straight Road – Your Journey Is Your Story, featuring CX Cloud Compliance Leader Deborah Sparma.
Sparma shared, “No matter where you are and have a new goal to break into, see what can transfer. Who knew that theater could transfer to working in a tech company? Who knew that working as a vet tech could lead me into corporate America? The variety of expertise has taught me that there is always room to grow and skills that can be transferred from one role to the next no matter how disparate they may be. For example, my experience in theater has made me a better speaker and presenter.”
Davenport, who was a journalist and librarian before making the switch to health care IT and then Duo, advises, “Figure out the core skills that you have and what job titles and words are used in other industries. Talk about the things you already know how to do, because every industry has its own jargon and that can feel like a barrier until you figure out how to translate it.” Cisco provides a list of common job titles and the experience and certifications needed for key cybersecurity roles.
She continues, “I had no idea what customer enablement was before I joined Duo. I did not know that was a job, and no one would’ve told me that. But it turns out that being a librarian, knowing how to organize things, having worked with the public, being a journalist who can write and create accurate, complex information on a deadline, and then understanding the technology of making something user centered and how people want to consume that information in different formats in different points in time, based on their needs, all of those were things that I knew and had experience in. And so, it was just discovering the opportunities that were already out there but were called something different than I knew about.”
Davenport’s advice for those wanting to enter cybersecurity: “A lot of professions want that super specialist, and we definitely have people who are those people, but I’ve seen Duo hire people from a lot of different backgrounds, and the additional perspective that they come in with and the fresh ideas is what keeps us innovative and what makes it a really fun and interesting place to work.”
She elaborates: “From a journalism background, the level of responsibility that you have as a journalist to be fair and accurate, and the ethics that you learn that are integral to that profession, were super helpful and important coming into any kind of customer-facing role where you’re used to being accountable. You have really high standards for yourself, and that translates into being able to hold those high standards for what customers expect, too.”
For journalists in particular, she says, “I would just like to give a shout out to folks in journalism who are wondering, maybe their career path is taking them in a different direction. (…) you have so many valuable skills that, if you are interested in a career in tech, there’s a lot of opportunities because of some of those things like I talked about earlier. The experience of working on deadline, that accountability and responsibility that you take and the ethics of what you do, those all translate. And so, those are all totally portable to a new context.”
Edwards states, “Start researching all the top cybersecurity companies and what products they offer and then take it another level down: What programs and software are they using? Are there different classes I need to take or certifications I need to get?”
Cisco offers top-notch cybersecurity training and security certifications. Also available are Cisco Certified CyberOps training videos and connection with those learning new cybersecurity skills through the Security Certifications Community and CyberOps Certifications Community.
Sparma highlights, “I believe a lot in teams. We all have skill sets that can complement each other no matter where we are in our career. I know I don’t know it all. I lean on the teams and people around me.”
Davenport reports, “Your experiences are going to give you a fresh perspective that’s actually really valued by the people who maybe came from that industry. Having that diversity of experiences and viewpoints is really celebrated more so here than pretty much any other place I’ve worked. My advice would be to trust that you can learn a totally new industry, and that the experiences that you’re coming with are really valuable.”
Duo Security Lead Recruiter Shannon Curran affirms, “We’ve spoken with many candidates who don’t come from the cybersecurity space.” She says that telling that story in your resume and throughout the application, interview and hiring process allows recruiters to understand why you’d be a match and that kindness goes a long way.
When starting at Duo Security, Davenport shares, “I came in pretty fresh. I knew that I was going to be doing this intensive onboarding program. We have technical trainers who we work with, so that we’re customer-ready. And so, I knew coming in that I would have a lot of support. I felt like, ‘Okay, I’m embracing the unknown and I’m going to learn a bunch of new things, but I’m going to have this great team that’s going to help me learn, is going to teach me.’ And that worked out pretty well.”
“Trust that you can learn, trust that the experiences you’re coming in with are valuable and are going to give you a fresh perspective, and that you will have the support to learn and grow, even if you’re changing industries.” —Manager of Duo Global Knowledge and Communities team Kelly Davenport
A culture of learning helps. Sparma says, “I’m always learning. Cisco especially has all the trainings out there that we can take. Invest in yourself, in learning, and don’t be afraid to ask.”
Davenport took this approach: “Because I’m a writer, I would go to our classes where we’re learning about the product. And then I would write my own summary in my own words, to describe what I was learning. I’d run that by my teacher and say, ‘Okay, am I on the right track?’ And that really helped me metabolize what I was learning and get that feedback in a way that worked for me as a learner.”
Maintaining a strong network can ease the career change process in terms of learning about the cybersecurity industry from people working in it and in terms of referrals. Marketing Specialist Julie Kramer says, “Try to find a networking partner in the company and ask for references for networking purposes. For example, if I have a friend who knows me that works at Cisco and they’re like, ‘Hey, do you mind referring me?’ I’d be happy to give them a referral.”
Sparma said, “Working in technology wasn’t even an option I considered when I started college…I broke into a new career but I had my background working in hospitals, working at the insurance company…someone knew me, knew my personality, helped me get that role… At Cisco, I had applied at other roles where I had a one-to-one fit. This one stretches me, but I could bring a lot to the table at the same time and still grow. That’s what energizes me.”
You never know how your network may come in handy throughout your career. In 2012, Edwards’ very first manager called him with one question: “Hey, do you want to come work at Cisco?”
Sparma’s first mentor “shepherded me. She took me under her wing, supported my wish to go back to school, encouraged me to get certification in something I didn’t know existed. I didn’t know what a mentor was at first, and it didn’t dawn on me until after I’d moved on in my career and traveled around the world that I realized I got there because of my first mentor. What does get difficult is everyday meetings, deliverables, timeframes — sometimes you just have to make it a point to make sure that you invest in yourself and keep that promise to yourself and keep your mentoring relationships going. I’ve had different mentors at Cisco and you can have multiple mentors along the way.” Employee Resource Organizations are another great place to find those mentors or mentor others.
“Find a mentor for support, guidance, knowledge, and motivation. Then pay it forward and mentor others. You can always bring something to the table.” —CX Cloud Compliance Leader Deborah Sparma
Sparma continues, “One of the first things they asked me to do when I started at Cisco was find a mentor. Cisco also allows people to shadow colleagues to learn what they do, network, and for knowledge transfer. We all can benefit from each other.”
To learn more about Cisco Secure and Duo Security and how you can apply your skills, passion, and experience to cybersecurity, check out our open roles.
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At Cisco Duo, we continually strive to enhance our products to make it easy for security practitioners to apply access policies based on the principles of zero trust. This blog highlights how Duo is achieving that goal by simplifying user and administrator experience and supporting data sovereignty requirements for customers around the world. Read on to get an overview of what we have been delivering to our customers in those areas in the past few months.
Duo strives to make secure access frictionless for employees while reducing the administrative burden on IT (Information Technology) and helpdesk teams. This is made possible thanks to the strong relationship between our customers and our user research team. The insights we gained helped us implement some exciting enhancements to Duo Single Sign-On (SSO) and Device Trust capabilities.
Duo SSO unifies identities across systems and reduces the number of credentials a user must remember and enter to gain access to resources. Active Directory (AD) is the most popular authentication source connected to Duo SSO, accounting for almost 80% of all setups. To make Duo’s integration with AD even easier to implement, we have introduced Duo SSO support for multiple Active Directory forests for organizations that have users in multiple domains. Additionally, we added the Expired Password Resets feature in Duo SSO. It provides an easy experience for users to quickly reset their expired Active Directory password, log into their application, and carry on with their day. Continuing the theme of self service, we introduced a hosted device management portal – a highly requested feature from customers. Now administrators no longer need to host and manage the portal, and end users can login with Duo SSO to manage their authentication devices (e.g.: TouchID, security keys, mobile phone etc.) without needing to open IT helpdesk tickets.
We are also simplifying the administrator experience. We have made it easy for administrators to configure Duo SSO with Microsoft 365 using an out of the box integration. Duo SSO layers Duo’s strong authentication and flexible policy engine on top of Microsoft 365 logins. Further, we have heard from many customers that they want to deliver a seamless on-brand login experience for their workforce. To support this, we have made custom branding so simple that administrators can quickly customize their end-user authentication experience from the settings page in the Duo Admin Panel.
Device Trust is a critical capability required to enable secure access for the modern workforce from any location. We have made it easy for organizations to adopt device trust and distinguish between managed and unmanaged devices. Organizations can enforce a Trusted Endpoint policy to allow access only from managed devices for critical applications. We have eliminated the requirement to deploy and manage device certificates to enforce this policy. Device Health application now checks the managed status of a device. This lowers administrative overhead while enabling organizations to achieve a better balance between security and usability. We have also added out-of-box integrations with unified endpoint management solutions such as Active Directory domain-joined devices, Microsoft Intune, Jamf Pro and VMware Workspace ONE. For organizations that have deployed a solution that is not listed above, Duo provides a Device API that works with any enterprise device management system.
To support our growing customer base around the world, Duo expanded its data center presence to Australia, Singapore, and Japan in September last year. And now Duo is thrilled to announce the launch of the two new data centers in the UK and India. Both the new and existing data centers will allow customers to meet all local requirements, all while maintaining ISO27001 and SOC2 compliance and a 99.999% service availability goal.
The launch of the new data centers is the backbone of Duo’s international expansion strategy. In the last two years, Duo has met key international growth milestones and completed the C5 attestation (Germany), AgID certification (Italy) and IRAP assessment (Australia) – all of which demonstrate that Duo meets the mandatory baseline standards for use by the public sector in the countries listed above. Check out this Privacy Data Sheet to learn more about Cisco Duo’s commitment to our customer’s data privacy and data sovereignty.
That is a summary of what we have been up to here at Cisco Duo in the past few months. But we are not done yet! Stay tuned for more exciting announcements at RSA Conference 2022 next week. Visit us at our booth at RSAC 2022 and World of solutions at Cisco Live 2022.
In the meanwhile, check out this on-demand #CiscoChat panel discussion with real-world security practitioners on how they have implemented secure access best practices for hybrid work using Duo. And if you do not want to wait, sign-up for a 30 day trial and experience how Duo can simplify secure access for your workforce.
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