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Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021

Know a woman in cybersecurity who inspires you?

Nominations are now closed.

Over the years, the cybersecurity industry has steadily worked to break down the stereotype of men coding in hoodies. However, while there has no doubt been progress within the field, it simply is not moving fast enough. The perception that such technical job roles are reserved for men continues to persist and the unwelcoming culture this fosters dissuades women from sticking around, or even considering cybersecurity as a career path in the first place.

We need to do better to make cybersecurity appeal to women. The barriers to entry as well as structural deterrents in employment must be removed. We need to change perceptions of the industry and more importantly, we need role models for other women to aspire to.

Specifically, role models in the shape of women who have had demonstrable success in the sector or are driving the changes necessary to redress the current imbalance, as they form an important part of changing perceptions of the industry. Which is why, in November 2021, we showcased the top 21 most inspiring women in cybersecurity for 2021!

The public is free to nominate candidates via the IT Security Guru website, and the final Top 20 Women will be selected by our esteemed panel of judges. A profile on some of the exceptional women nominated will be featured every working day during the month of November.

On Tuesday, the 30th of November, the IT Security Guru – with the generous support from our sponsors: KPMG and Beazley – hosted a physical event in London. The event itself kicked off with a welcoming address by our keynote speaker, Jenny Radcliffe, before proceeding with an informal Q&A panel.

All those nominated for this year’s awards were invited and the keynote talk was also broadcasted live, allowing the general public to listen in! Check it out here: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kpmg-advisory_most-inspiring-women-in-cyber-2021-jenny-activity-6871506257887461376-jr4h

With Thanks to Our Sponsors

Beazley

Judges

Q&A Panellists

2021 Nominee Shortlist

Part I of the Nominee Shortlist

Part II of the Nominee Shortlist

2021 Top 21 Feature Profiles

A lack of diversity in cybersecurity puts organisations at risk

One week later and International Women’s Day is still fresh in our minds. There is still some way to go but every day that we challenge the stigma and bias that impact women in the workplace. Obrela Security Industries have launched a campaign to celebrate women in the cybersecurity industry. You can read their blog […]

How the CISO has adapted to protect the hybrid workforce

Many organisations have been considering a network transformation initiative to support the adoption of SaaS, cloud-based applications, and an increasingly remote workforce. Given the connectivity needs of a remote workforce – and knowing a hybrid workforce is here to stay – many IT teams have had to make sudden changes in the way workers connect […]

Securing Diversity for Success

With work still to be done to boost diversity and inclusion in cyber security, KPMG UK’s Katie Diacon unpacks where some of the challenges exist, and what could make a difference. Cyber security is one of the most innovative and dynamic sectors to work in, and it is increasingly vital to the operational resilience of […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards 2021

Last night, with the help of our sponsors KPMG and Beazley, we celebrated this year’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards. Hosted in Canary Wharf, the awards were kick-started by Jenny Radcliffe, who delivered an amazing speech about what it is to be a woman in this industry, using FAQs to frame her talk. Before recognising this year’s 21 […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Areej Eliyan, IT Administrator at MOEHE Qatar

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Anna Collard, SVP Content Strategy & Evangelist at KnowBe4

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Bindu Sundaresan, Director at AT&T Cybersecurity 

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Dr. Jacqui Taylor, CEO of FlyingBinary

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Regina Bluman, Security Analyst at Algolia

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Aileen Ryan, Senior Director Portfolio Strategy at Siemens EDA

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Gail Kent, Director of Messenger Policy at Facebook

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Rea James, Global Cyber Strategic Threat Intelligence Lead at Vodafone

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Gamze Konyar, Head of Cyber at Marsh CEE & Eastern Mediterranean Regions

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Jennifer Valentine, Security Specialist Lead at Jamf

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Anjali Das, Partner, Co-Chair Cybersecurity and Data Privacy at Wilson Elser

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Eleanor Ludlam, Senior Associate at DAC Beachcroft LLP

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Anne Woodley, Security Specialist at Microsoft

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Sema Yuce, Director at Truth ISC Technology and Security Consultancy LTD

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Marilise de Villiers, Founder & CEO of ROAR! Coaching and Consulting

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Lisa Ventura, Founder of Cyber Security Unity

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Alison Dyer, Group CISO at Urenco

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Pat Ryan, Director and Founder of Cyber Girls First

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Sophia McCall, Security Consultant, NCC Group

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Shehnaaz Sonde, Senior Manager – Cyber Response Services at KPMG 

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2021: Bronwyn Boyle, CISO at Mambu

The IT Security Guru’s Most Inspiring Women in Cyber Awards aims to shed a light on the remarkable women in our industry. The following is a feature on just one of the many phenomenal women put forward for the 2021 awards. Presented in a Q&A format, the nominee’s answers are written in their own words […]

2021 Photos

Virtual Event 2020

WINNERS 2020

If you have any questions, please feel free to get in touch.

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