Introducing women with a deep interest in cybersecurity

Daisy Radford is BAE Systems’ Head of Operations and Delivery for APAC, based in Singapore she leads a team of programme managers, engineers and software developers in delivering communication intelligence and cyber defence capabilities.

What brought you to the cybersecurity industry?

I started my career in accountancy but quickly realised I wanted to be “closer to the action”, I moved into project management and have delivered multiple complex defence and security projects in many different countries including UK, Middle East and Asia.

I find cybersecurity truly fascinating - the marriage of technology and human behaviours means that even the most complicated technical issues can be worked through by stepping back and thinking about the scenario through the lens of the human users.

It’s because of this fascination that I don’t regard my work as simply a job, as a means to an end, but rather my work contributes significantly to my daily sense of purpose – I consider myself very lucky to be working in cyber.

What were your defining moments in this industry, and factors or guidance that helped you achieve them?

At a very high level, cybersecurity might seem like a thankless task, success means not being detected by users and means that cyberattacks never have a reason to be in the news. However like most IT companies these days agile delivery of, even the lengthiest, projects in cybersecurity are a compilation of many wins.

It was soon after I took my first job in the industry that I realised that not only does a career in cybersecurity give someone an overarching sense of purpose but also an, almost, daily “win”.

The other defining moment for me was when I realised that not having a typical cyber background was an asset rather than just a hindrance. I didn’t study engineering or computer science and I’m commonly the only woman in meetings. Once I got comfortable with that I found that making an impact came more easily, I tend to approach a problem in a different way from how the rest of the team have interpreted it and that has lead to many successes.

That’s certainly not to say that being in the minority doesn’t bring challenges. Whether it’s being left out or initially met with a level of suspicion, I don’t know any leading women in male-dominated industries that haven’t had to adopt clever coping strategies in order to progress their careers but the positives outweigh the challenges tenfold!

Prominent Cybersecurity trends:

What are some of the trends you have seen in the market lately, and what do you think will emerge in the future?

The cyber industry is constantly changing and no more so than within the last couple years.

There’s been a lot in the press regarding how having the majority of a workforce working from home heightens a company’s risk of a cyberattack significantly. Humans always come out in top place for being the most likely in road for an attack, and when the majority of working hours are done from the comfort of our own dining tables you can understand why the level of risk increases.

However, it isn’t only COVID that has impacted the cybersecurity landscape. Technological advances are also changing. The magnitude of data we share continues to grow and more and more apps and websites collect information whether we are overtly aware or not. The roll out of 5G is likely to accelerate this trend further. Unfortunately, with more data out there, the incentives for attackers increases. The level of sophistication in attacks means robust and current cyber defences are absolutely paramount for every (every!) organisation.

These changes are the reason that cybersecurity needs to keep advancing. It is the reason developments in Machine Learning, AI, and more effective training for users are fundamental to ensure efficiencies in defence solutions stay a step ahead of the attackers. It’s motivating and is the reason why cybersecurity skills are vital to the future safety of our communities.

Females in Cyber Security

What can we do to encourage more women to join the cybersecurity sector?

It's estimated that only 10-20% of the cyber security workforce are women which is a great shame for women and a great shame for the industry.

For women, it's a shame because a career in cyber security is guaranteed to be one of purpose, variety and excitement. In addition, the number of disciplines involved in the industry means the range of career paths is vast.

For the industry, you just have to look at how the lack of diversity negatively impacts the bottom line to realise not attracting women is not good for business. On top of losing money though, cyber security is an industry which protects society's most vital infrastructures, therefore diversity is needed so evolution and innovation happens in the most effective way.

Final thoughts

Thanks for talking to us today Daisy, is there anything else you would like to add?

Only that the work AiSP puts into encouraging women into the cyber industry is fantastic. I’m a mentor with AiSP Ladies in Cyber which not only gives aspiring female students great access to women already in the industry but as a mentor I’ve learnt of huge amount from my mentee. These learnings have ranged from my mentee introducing me to a latest concept being discussed in academia to helping me understand how to best interact with the next generation of the cybersecurity workforce.