At our TLC Connect Global Benelux event, our partners over at Tanium asked the community what they saw as being their key challenges…

…and we were surprised by the results!

Our TLC Connect Global summits are more than just technology networking events, they are unparalleled opportunities to sit down and engage with the community and hear from the experts on the challenges they are facing. It was our partners at Tanium who challenged attendees to lay out their challenges as a group before deciding how each should be approached.

Here are a few of the challenges attendees of TLC Connect Global Benelux CISO Series identified as their main concerns:

Effectiveness and efficient use of tools

With organisations now burdened by an array of security tooling, a lot of CISOs are reaching critical mass. Many face hurdles in integrating these tools seamlessly into their existing systems, leading to gaps in security coverage. Others found it was the growing complexity and sophistication of cyber security tooling that can result in operational inefficiencies, especially if the staff are not adequately trained to leverage these tools optimally.

Prioritisation of action

A challenge every CISO will understand well is knowing exactly how to prioritise your efforts. Identifying which vulnerabilities to patch first, which alerts to respond to, and how to allocate time and budget effectively are critical decisions that can have profound implications for any organisation. With the volume of threats to respond to ever increasing, this isn’t getting any easier.

Aligning with the business objectives

The gulf between security and the wider business is something that has plagued security leaders for years. Communication gaps and a lack of a common language is a major blocker for security, and while it is slowly improving, the challenge remains for security leaders to bridge that gap and promote a security culture – easier said than done.

Lack of visibility

Visibility is critical but with environments growing in size and complexity, it is getting harder and harder for security experts to maintain the visibility they need to effectively detect and respond to threats. Without comprehensive visibility, critical vulnerabilities may go unnoticed or breaches could remain undetected making it a top priority for security experts.

Staying compliant

Staying compliant with cyber security regulations presents a complex challenge. With compliance standards continually evolving and differing by industry and region, there is no easy way to manage it. Organisations must navigate a labyrinth of legal requirements. Being able to quickly pivot and easily adapt to new regulations, or even changes to existing ones requires a level of agility that few organisations have.

These are just a small sample of the challenges highlighted by our community. Alongside those listed above, our community highlighted a range of other key challenges including CISO authority and security visibility, training and testing business response, and appropriate AI usage and governance.

Whether they are new or ones experts have been struggling with for years, the field is cyber security is fraught with challenges. By working together we make it easier for the security community to thrive and we are proud to have a community who so willingly throw themselves into these discussions for the betterment of their industry.

To see more about the events we hold for the community, check out our services page. To get involved in one of our upcoming events, check out the Technology Leaders Club.