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ISG Africa changes to fight cybercrime

The last meeting of the ISG Africa Gauteng chapter saw some significant changes to the organisation, which will make it an even stronger presence when it comes to digital security in South Africa and Africa.

The organisation was originally launched in response to the increase in information security threats facing companies in Africa. It consists of security professionals from corporate, government and IT/legal firms within Africa and aimed to provide a forum for the exchange of information security information and experience, as well as raise awareness of potential vulnerabilities within organisations.

Previously a voluntary organisation supported by the efforts of a few members and companies that offered their time and services for free, the ISG is now opening its ranks to paid memberships. Chairman Craig Rosewarne explains that the ISG has offered a free service to the African community for almost six years, delivering significant benefits in the process, however, this model is not sustainable.

The new ISG Africa now offers three membership options:

1. Bronze membership – Free

2. Silver membership – R390 p.a.

3. Gold membership – R590 p.a.

Better serving the security community

The association will also be launching two new for-profit companies that are expected to play a greater role in the African information security community.

The first is an Africa information Security Portal, a joint venture aimed at keeping information security top of mind among readers. It will also spread the message and educate the community on the latest issues in this complex field of operations.

The second venture will be a Cybersecurity Response Centre. The goal of this centre will be to keep the security community informed of the latest threats and trends in the online world. It will also provide monitoring and assistance to companies unable or unwilling to run their own security operations centre.

Rosewarne adds that the goal of the changes is to create a respected association and operations that will benefit the information security community and start the process of securing South Africa and Africa’s technology systems from cybercrime. To get the ball rolling, educational workshops will also form part of the ISG’s operations going forward.

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