In our very first interview, we’re proud to spotlight Vandana Verma Sehgal. Vandana is the Chair of the Board of Directors for the OWASP (Open Web Application Security Project) Foundation. The non-profit foundation works to improve application security, organizing projects, tools, documents, forums, and chapters all over the world. Vandana is also passionate about initiatives to bring more diversity to cybersecurity.
Don’t miss her full audio-only interview where she describes how she got her start working in security operations, taking the night shift. She also describes how she got involved in OWASP, eventually being encouraged to run for a board seat, and finally becoming the first female chair of the board (and having them change the title from “chairman” to “chair.”) She also talks about being the first employee in India for her current company, Snyk, where she is the security relations leader.
Vandana has also been active in bringing more diversity to infosec. She said that she was used to being the only woman; women weren’t usually offered the night shift for her security operations team. Sure, cybersecurity is a niche skill, but she said it’s also a very male-dominated culture. Vendana is passionate about changing that. She started InfosecGirls to create a safe place for girls to learn about cybersecurity, collaborating with colleges to help women gain the technical training and skills to join our field.
Be sure to check out her story as well as some resources she has provided:
- Learn more about Vandana and her many activities at https://infosecvandana.com/
- Learn about and get involved with InfosecGirls
- Learn about her InfosecDiversity project to bring more diversity to the field
- Check out her video trainings and more great information
Please visit ESG's Women in Cybersecurity page, where you can also find a link to the full audio interview with Vandana.
We’re thrilled to kick off our Women in Cybersecurity series with this interview, and hope you’ll join us to hear more inspiring stories in future episodes!
