The destruction of information security’s “Dr. No.” A four part series on transformation to Security 2.0 

The IT communities in the federal government and corporate America have for too long relied on managers who always seem to say no to needed mission support technology innovation because of security concerns.

 

The nickname Dr. No arose for managers most effective at derailing technical innovations in the name of information security and configuration management. We need to transform Dr. No into a cyber warrior who can deliver rapid, secure mission data and facilitate collaborative information sharing.

 

Federal information security managers I’ve talked with are working harder than ever to use cyber security and configuration management to support missions that need flexible, collaborative access to information. The challenge is not balancing mission needs with IT security. It is leveraging IT security capabilities to enable Web 2.0 collaboration.

 

IT security can be a force multiplier to promote rapid, flexible sharing of critical information. Skip Bailey at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives uses this analogy: “The primary benefit of better brakes on a car is to allow the car to go faster.” IT security should let you do more, not less.

 

Mary Ann Davidson of Oracle Corp. and Elad Yoran of Security Growth Partners penned an article, “Enterprise Security for Web 2.0” in the November 2007 issue of Computing. It discussed Security 2.0 in terms of securing all data, end points, networks and perimeters. My four part series on leveraging Security 2.0 for data, end points, networks and perimeters will continue Mary Ann and Elad’s discussion using your comments in the MeriTalk Water Cooler.