Women in IT Security News, Features, Awards and Commentary| SC Media

Meghan Maneval, vice president of product strategy & evangelism at RiskOptics, on her dedication to diversity in a male-dominated industry. "My perspective is really focusing on what are those things that I can do to make someone else's life easier or better."

Pam Schwamb, a senior manager and scyops engineer at Conquest Cyber, describes how she entered the cybersecurity industry and the challenges of getting an authorization package through the Department of Defense. 

Leading AI voices call out gender bias in the technology, as well as inequities in professional AI roles.

Christina Liaghati leads MITRE ATLAS, which she described as a community collaboration on "all things AI security and assurance."

Last year, Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, announced the goal to have women make up 50% of the cybersecurity workforce by 2030.

Dara Gibson, senior cyber insurance manager at Optiv, describes how she began her career in cybersecurity and how she became a mentor to other women looking to enter the field. "That forced me to look at where I was going and where I came from."

When Wendi Whitmore applied to the Air Force’s Office of Special Investigations, she was told that it wasn’t a role for her – Whitmore went on to conduct major computer crimes investigations for the Air Force and now heads up Unit 42, a leading threat research and incident response organization.

“When I find powerhouse women in the AI space, I latch onto them like a little magnet,” said Liaghati.

Risk-management specialist and security evangelist Chasserae Coyne, a 2023 Women in IT Security honoree, knows the value of communicating difficult topics with clarity and of speaking out when it's necessary.

Schwamb says it's apparent that she belongs at the table when she begins discussing a cybersecurity incident.