SIG-ISM, GÉANT Special Interest Group dedicated to exchanging knowledge and experiences on information security management topics, and WISE, the global e-infrastructure security experts’ forum, gathered again for their second joint virtual meeting on 26-29 October 2020. Each day, the programme featured a 2-hour morning session hosted by SIG-ISM and a 2-hour afternoon session hosted by WISE. Participants were invited to attend all sessions.
Approximately 40 participants from Europe and the US were able to attend a total of 4 sessions and 23 presentations by14 speakers sharing the most up-to-date information on Security for Collaborating Infrastructures (SCI), security policy and SLATE (Services Layer at the Edge – https://slateci.io/). The programme also featured updates about GÉANT Security Strategy, discussion on Vulnerability Assessment as a Service, Security Baseline, Business Continuity Recommendations and discussions on the EU-US privacy shield. Participants also shared concerns about the protection of sensitive data, talked about ISO certification, cybersecurity month and shared their COVID19-related challenges.
The WISE session featured a proposal for a new working group dedicated to “Best practices on handling software vulnerabilities”.
David Kelsey, Chair of the WISE Community Steering Committee commented: “It was very good to meet again, jointly with SIG-ISM, to share our experiences and explore areas deserving future collaboration. Much of the work in WISE takes place within its working groups and we have received interesting reports from all the active groups. A highlight was the developing Security for Collaborating Infrastructures (SCI) not only about guidance for SCI maturity assessment, but also the development of updated policy templates building on the earlier AARC Policy Development Kit. We certainly miss face to face interactions, but virtual meetings such as these still manage to engage and enthuse the WISE participants.”
Notwithstanding the lack of face-to-face interaction, participants’ feedback has been very positive. For some the meeting was a reminder that “we’re all in this together” and that these events are “great collaboration and information sharing opportunities” as well as a good push for “collaboration between working groups to address security challenges and ways to improve outreach, because “security isn’t just about policies, but also about good ways to communicate best practices and address challenges together.”
Alf Moens, SIG-ISM Chair said: “The purpose of the two days of interactive sessions was to share experiences, get feedback and inspiration to continue with our mission to protect and secure Research & Education, in the coming months. It was inspiring to witness how this international group of committed experts are able to work together once again. However, the social aspects of the event were all sorely missed.”
Check the wiki event page for meeting agenda and slideware.
If you are interested in the topics discussed at WISE or SIG-ISM and you would like to join future meetings, here’s what you need to do:
– Visit WISE online page for more information and join WISE mailing list.
– Visit the SIG -ISM wiki page to find out more about this group and how to get involved.
