Let’s make 2022 the Year of the Security Worker

In a time of change and challenge, the Water Tiger offers inspiration for every security worker

If you are not a person who pays attention to the Chinese zodiac, you may not have known that 1 February marked the beginning of the Year of the Tiger – and, specifically, the year of the Water Tiger.

The Year of the Tiger occurs once every 12 years, and the Water Tiger comes just once every 60 years – just once or twice in each person’s lifetimes – as the calendar rotates through wood, fire, earth, gold, and water.

Each type of tiger has its own personal characteristics, and water tigers, in particular, are known to be studious and thoughtful, blessed with a strong sense of self-esteem, strong chances of career success, proficiency in arts and crafts, and the ability to learn new things.

Those are all invaluable traits, and those of you born in 1962 can rest confident in the knowledge that you are in good company: actors Tom Cruise, Ralph Fiennes and Demi Moore, conservationist Steve Irwin, and singers Paula Abdul and Jon Bon Jovi were all, like you, born in the year of the Water Tiger.

If we look back through history, many significant achievements for women have also occurred in this most auspicious year. In 1962, for example, Jean E. Sammat developed the FORMAC programming language. In 1902, the Parliament of Australia passed the Commonwealth Franchise Act 1902, which granted women the right to vote – making Australia the first independent country to grant women’s suffrage at a national level.

Sixty years earlier, in 1842, mathematician Ada Lovelace was working hard alongside Charles Babbage as he developed his Analytical Engine – widely considered to be the first working machine. Lovelace’s publication of an algorithm for controlling the machine has led to her being remembered as the world’s first computer programmer.

Step back sixty years earlier to consider the achievements of American soldier Deborah Sampson, who disguised herself as a man for 17 months to fight the British during the American Revolutionary War. She was wounded in battle in 1782, was one of the first women to receive a pension for her military service, and went on to become the first woman to tour the US as an esteemed lecturer.

The Year of the Security Worker

My question to you, then, is simple: what will women do in 2022, this year of the Water Tiger, to make this year go down in history like so many before us?

We have made great strides towards equality and diversity over the past few years, and – as the breadth and depth of talented women in the 2021 Australian Women in Security Awards show – the security industry is awash in talent.

Consider the achievements of award winners like Kate Monckton, Marie Patane, Pip Rae, Anu Kukar, Sarah Hosey, Kavika Singhal, Laura Brandon, Alison Lee, AWSN Cadets, Reshma Devi, and Moufida Rima – as well as allies like Simon Carabetta and Greater Western Water, which are demonstrating what can be accomplished when leaders take up the cause of women in cybersecurity.

Consider the work of individuals like Amanda-Jane Turner, Nicole Stephensen, and Jess Dodson, who are going out of their way to help all of us fight cybercrime by educating us about its perils. Jo Cooper is constantly running tips and tricks, and delivering articles about data privacy and your data rights. And Jacqui Lostau is scoring one goal after another building women security leaders and mentorship programs.

Given all this great work – and that of so many other amazing women that are helping the cybersecurity industry shake off the cobwebs of decades of myopia – I am taking the initiative to rename this year not as the Year of the Water Tiger, but as the Year of the Security Worker.

As you read about the achievements, advice, and warnings of the many experts in Issue 7 of the Women in Security magazine, think about what role you can play to support positive change across the industry.

Consider how the Great Resignation is forcing employers to get real about keeping cybersecurity workers – many of whom already have one foot out the door, and a better job offer waiting for them.

For many, money is less important than the sense that their employers value them – and the diversity of their peers. The numbers prove that employee satisfaction increases markedly when workers see their employers promoting diversity.

Diversity isn’t just a way of keeping staff, though: with cybercriminals building ragtag teams of like-minded individuals, the relative homogeneity of defensive corporate cybersecurity teams has become a liability – and one that requires real leadership to overcome.

“It takes a deliberate leader to have the self-awareness to question hiring choices,” notes Raytheon Intelligence & Space executive John Check, who was assigned to build a cybersecurity-focused team and made diversity a non-negotiable part of its design.

“If we don’t commit to doing this,” he said, “We choose to limit the creativity that goes into brainstorming, problem-solving, and new ideas that are essential for fighting cybercrime.”

As you will also read in Issue 7 of the magazine, getting creative is becoming particularly important because, despite years of pouring money into cybersecurity, many executives are starting to think about other ways to spend their budgets.

This means cybersecurity teams will need to look past the new tech to lean on staff diversity, and team cohesiveness, more than ever.

Keep this all in mind as you consider what you will achieve during this, the Year of the Security Worker.

Stay fierce and brave like the Water Tiger, and keep fighting for better, more inclusive and more productive workplaces that recognise the strengths of every individual.

This is our year to stand up and grasp every opportunity given, take the kudos, earn those promotions, improve diversity and inclusion in our industry – and, in so doing, help make the world a better place.