Recent Activity in the Security Catalyst Community
While my recent business focus has kept me consumed, I have remained committed to participation in the Security Catalyst Community. In fact, now that we have launched the IPAT (more details and special offers to follow), I expect to start to slowly regain some time in my schedule. Last week, another member of the forum posted a “call to arms” message (link below) that raised some exciting and interesting points to start a discussion about how to effectively and ’smartly’ grow our community. I penned a brief response yesterday and have decided to move the conversation to a public area (for community members) and share my response here:
The goal of the community is to provide a dedicated and centralized resource that would meet the needs of the security community in general, and the many security bloggers and podcasters in specific. There is no monetary cost to join, but your currency is your participation inside or outside of the community. While growth is good, “smart” growth of quality conversations will enhance the value of the community.
We are now in the process of establishing a board (from the initial Trusted Catalyst members) with the charter of improving the community and making preparations to bring these efforts into a non-profit status. If you’ve been involved in that process before, you’ll understand that is not necessarily an easy process, but one that many of us feel is worthwhile. It will allow the community to grow into new directions and provide valuable insight and resources to support the way organizations provide security.
As we set forth on that path, the way our community will grow is through active participation and discussion. I find it interesting that some people in our industry cite they are “too busy” and then ask me the very questions that have already been answered in the community. Equally ironic are those that claim a desire to mentor and share, but are absent from the forums. This is something we need to seek to understand better and then work to improve the community to welcome those voices and insights. The vision I shared with our efforts is one where for each “unit” of time you invest, you reap twice as much back in time saved, headache saved or general expansion of knowledge that opens new doors.
I have found those most active tend to benefit the most. In Andrew’s case, I also find it odd that his query drew only one response - but that probably serves as proof that we need to continue to grow and attract more members.
I appreciate the call to arms (and FWIW, it was James idea, and I pushed him to run with it). I see this as a sign that the community is ready to grow and expand. Good timing, too, since we’re preparing to migrate to a new site and incorporate some needed new features, including a chat capability. Slowly we’ll grow; in this case, slow is good, too.
You can help. Spend some time helping someone else and then consider what you need to make this more effective for your efforts. Post it here. Talk about it, create it and invite others to join you in the discussion. Many paths to take, but the good news is that they all lead to important conversations about how we can practice security more effectively.
I enjoy the journey and am glad you’re here. Tomorrow holds much promise for us all!
The Value within the Forums
No bluffing when I tell you that I am amazed every time I read the value that is contained in the forums. We are at a place where you may not be able to keep up with every new post. This is good! We have a search function that works surprisingly well, and I use it all the time. The conversations continue to expand and improve. If you have questions, comments, solutions, ideas - this is the place to come and share. I find the more you engage, the deeper and more useful the connections you will develop and the more impact you will realize. This directly translates into making your job easier!
Becoming a Member
If you are not yet a member, please consider joining us today. There is no cost beyond your participation. PLEASE NOTE: we enforce our naming standard - and you will need to create an account using your real name in the format of Firstname.Lastname. We welcome you to the conversation and look forward to sharing with you and learning from you.
Recent Conversations of Interest
Here are some of the current conversations that I find interesting, exciting and waiting for you! In fact, I realized I have a few I need to go back and comment on. My pledge is to find one hour each week to engage. I learned a lot on my last spin through the forums!
how often should I get involved?
Non-search engine news sources
How to jump start security awareness training?
Thoughts on Computer Forensics and magazines
How did you get your start? (I still owe mine. It’s in progress, I swear)
Gauging Security Awareness Effectiveness
Free, Fair Elections Worldwide — *** This is a personal favorite of mine, and I love seeing others get engaged on this one!!
Yoggie - Fact or Fiction - would you buy or recommend one?
In our (new) School Security Forums:
Teachers taking laptops home for the summer
Wow, so it’s been a while since I really walked through the forums. There is a lot of information there, and a lot of opportunity for you to engage and contribute. See you there!!
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