Battling CISO Burnout with Smart Tech and Savvy Strategies

We cannot solve today’s new challenges with the same mindset and methods of the past. Yet, CISOs are overworked and hard-pressed on every side, leaving them with little time to explore new strategies and cutting-edge technologies to transform their security postures.

Are there technologies and proven tips that can ease cybersecurity leaders’ workloads so they can focus on more strategic initiatives? We ask three cybersecurity leaders to weigh in.
 

Start with the data

For Mandy Andress, Chief Information Security Officer of Elastic, the ability to detect and respond to sophisticated security threats today hinges on understanding data: “We need to make connections and carry out analysis on datasets at scales beyond what humans can process.”

Unfortunately, gathering all this data for examination is challenging. “Today’s organisations, especially large enterprises, have data scattered everywhere – in various public and private clouds, at the edge, and on on-premises servers. Managing all this data is challenging enough; monitoring it for threats is nearly impossible,” she explained.

Andress suggests using a data lake or a similar large-scale repository to create a unified view of the data, paired with the necessary performance to aid security professionals in their analysis. Thankfully, the technology for these capabilities already exists.

“Today’s best data lakes meet the twin requirements of scale and speed through persistent object storage, allowing CISOs to oversee and analyse a larger volume of data for potential threats. This is critical, as today’s adversaries are carrying out attacks over longer periods of time to evade detection,” said Andress.
 

Establish multiple layers of security

When it comes to practical steps to ensure organisations stay protected, Rigo Van den Broeck, the Executive Vice President of Cybersecurity Solutions at Mastercard, advocates for a multi-layered approach that is both holistic and collaborative.

“This includes cross-border and cross-industry intelligence sharing, as well as applying best practices and resources to combat cyber threats more effectively. We also need governments and businesses to channel investments into cybersecurity infrastructure to enable more robust detection, prevention, and response capabilities,” he said.

Other layers involve implementing and enforcing cybersecurity standards, strengthening legal frameworks, and updating laws to address cybercrime. However, enhancing security within the organisation should be accomplished without tying everyone up in hoops.

“To foster trust and ensure adoption, all security solutions should be designed not only to perform but to do so without hampering the user experience. Security by design is crucial… [by] applying appropriate security to manage risk, rewarding trusted interactions with the best experiences, and only applying stronger security measures where there is a higher risk,” said Van den Broeck.

When it comes to user training, Van den Broeck has this to say: “Make cybersecurity training an enjoyable and entertaining activity for everyone in the team. There's a lot of available digital content out there now, and the ability to set up engaging crisis exercise training will not only boost your cybersecurity and resilience but also improve the non-cyber workforce.”
 

Leverage both AI and Automation

The rapid pace of change in cybersecurity means there’s no running away from automation and AI. According to Andress, AI-based security analytics gives CISOs the ability to continuously analyse data for anomalies and vulnerabilities, monitor threats, and respond to incidents as they occur.

While traditional AI, or machine learning, has been in use for some time, today’s attackers are becoming smarter and more persistent, potentially overwhelming security teams and exploiting transient gaps. This is where generative AI, or GenAI, can make a difference.

“GenAI-powered platforms bring natural language operation to threat investigation, helping analysts make faster and more accurate decisions with step-by-step guidance and context-aware, actionable recommendations. It helps staff operate more quickly without needing to write code,” said Andress.

Using GenAI, Andress says her team uncovered red team activity that might otherwise have gone unnoticed and identified threats beyond the purview of more traditional security monitoring. This includes patterns in anomalies spread over several months, detected only with the use of a data lake and GenAI models to find commonalities.

According to Goh Eng Choon, President of Cyber at ST Engineering, AI tools can automate and streamline processes like incident response and threat hunting, allowing teams to focus on more complex issues.

On top of using AI for advanced threat detection, Goh also recommends AI-powered Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR) platforms to enhance operational efficiency, improve incident response times, and reduce human error.
 

Prepare for the road ahead

Upcoming threats, such as post-quantum threats, are real, and CISOs should start preparing for the cybersecurity implications of quantum computers as soon as possible, says Goh. He also urged CISOs to engage more actively with the broader cybersecurity community.

“Participate in technical conferences and workshops to stay updated on the latest trends and emerging technologies. Engage with cybersecurity organisations, regulators, and forums to exchange knowledge, threat intelligence, and best practices.”

“These strategies would allow CISOs to better navigate the rapidly evolving cybersecurity landscape, ensuring their organisations remain resilient against emerging threats from new technologies,” Goh said.

Modern CISOs face a rapidly expanding set of cybersecurity challenges that are both more diverse and complex, according to Van den Broeck. This means the role will increasingly require both intense focus and prioritisation.

“We believe this includes finding ways to automate and better orchestrate foundational cybersecurity practices, and evaluating and implementing a few high-impact, practical, and scalable solutions with proven results that can provide immediate, tangible benefits to their organisations,” he concluded.