Dark Reading is part of the Informa Tech Division of Informa PLC

This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them.Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Registered in England and Wales. Number 8860726.

Database Security
Authentication
Mobile
Privacy
Compliance
Careers and People
Identity & Access Management
Security Monitoring
Advanced Threats
Insider Threats
Vulnerability Management
Comments
Ashley Madison CEO Resigns
Newest First  |  Oldest First  |  Threaded View
Joe Stanganelli
50%
50%
Joe Stanganelli,
 User Rank: Ninja
9/4/2015 | 5:39:26 AM
Re: C-suiters resigning
Other pertinent factors, I think, include the breadth/depth of the breach, and the vulnerabilities (both technical and cultural) that contributed to the breach.

Another important factor: crisis response.  Adobe presents a great example of what not to do.  With their major breach a while back, the company first estimated that just under 3 million customers had been impacted.  They later amended that number to at least 38 million.  Eventually, it was revealed that more than 150 million customers' information was compromised.

Not good for business.
rlynxwiler617
50%
50%
rlynxwiler617,
 User Rank: Apprentice
9/1/2015 | 9:45:01 AM
Re: C-suiters resigning
Your two types of companies was exactly what i was thinking when i wrote my response.  If every company has been breached to some degree (and I believe most if not all have already been) then every CxO in the nation should be stepping down at some point in the next few months.  I don't think this individual would have stepped down except for the high media visibility (and, of course, their business purpose), which is why I'm proposing that public perception/press are undeniable factors in who steps down and who doesn't.
Joe Stanganelli
50%
50%
Joe Stanganelli,
 User Rank: Ninja
8/31/2015 | 11:25:45 PM
Re: C-suiters resigning
On the one hand, I think your cause-and-effect analysis here is spot on.

On the other hand, there is a popular saying in the security community that I think holds true: "There are two types of organizations -- those that know they have been breached, and those that don't yet know they have been breached."

Which is to say that to a certain degree, hacks -- while mitigatable -- are not wholesale preventable.
SgS125
50%
50%
SgS125,
 User Rank: Ninja
8/31/2015 | 11:42:18 AM
Re: C-suiters resigning
Or in some cases it's just a valid result of poor performance just like any other job.  There are consequesnces for not doing a good job at most employers, why should we treat the c level suite any different?
jamieinmontreal
50%
50%
jamieinmontreal,
 User Rank: Strategist
8/31/2015 | 9:51:44 AM
Re: C-suiters resigning
This is true, but the effect is then to force other CxOs to look at their organization's security posture and liability differently.   If the buck stops at the CEO's door for a data breach the trickle down effect should be to force tighter security across the organisation.

The Board, in deciding that releasing the CEO port-breach is tacitly agreeing that breach prevention is a strategic, executive level responsibility.   This is no bad thing.
rlynxwiler617
50%
50%
rlynxwiler617,
 User Rank: Apprentice
8/29/2015 | 12:34:57 PM
Re: C-suiters resigning
I wonder if it's not so much the gov't regulators as much as saving face with the public.  Maybe the perception is that if I lose the trust of the public because of a breach, I can regain some of that by punishing someone at the highest levels, someone who is more visible than a first line manager.  My experience is that regulators are more concerned with the nuts and bolts of control changes rather than some figure head getting fired.  Who knows.
Joe Stanganelli
100%
0%
Joe Stanganelli,
 User Rank: Ninja
8/28/2015 | 11:12:30 PM
C-suiters resigning
One of the main reasons we see C-suiters resigning in the wake of data breaches is because of pressure from politicians and regulatory authorities, who want to see that the company is doing *something*.  Firing/asking the C(x)O to resign is a good step in that direction because it's usually a far preferable action than being subject to heightened regulatory scrutiny and sanctions.


Commentary
How SolarWinds Busted Up Our Assumptions About Code Signing
Dr. Jethro Beekman, Technical Director,  3/3/2021
News
'ObliqueRAT' Now Hides Behind Images on Compromised Websites
Jai Vijayan, Contributing Writer,  3/2/2021
News
Attackers Turn Struggling Software Projects Into Trojan Horses
Robert Lemos, Contributing Writer,  2/26/2021
Register for Dark Reading Newsletters
White Papers
Video
Cartoon Contest
Write a Caption, Win an Amazon Gift Card! Click Here
Latest Comment: Your new device is too complex. Me stick with iWheel.
Current Issue
2021 Top Enterprise IT Trends
We've identified the key trends that are poised to impact the IT landscape in 2021. Find out why they're important and how they will affect you today!
Flash Poll
How Enterprises are Developing Secure Applications
How Enterprises are Developing Secure Applications
Recent breaches of third-party apps are driving many organizations to think harder about the security of their off-the-shelf software as they continue to move left in secure software development practices.
Twitter Feed
Dark Reading - Bug Report
Bug Report
Enterprise Vulnerabilities
From DHS/US-CERT's National Vulnerability Database
CVE-2021-21331
PUBLISHED: 2021-03-03
The Java client for the Datadog API before version 1.0.0-beta.9 has a local information disclosure of sensitive information downloaded via the API using the API Client. The Datadog API is executed on a unix-like system with multiple users. The API is used to download a file containing sensitive info...
CVE-2021-27940
PUBLISHED: 2021-03-03
resources/public/js/orchestrator.js in openark orchestrator before 3.2.4 allows XSS via the orchestrator-msg parameter.
CVE-2021-21312
PUBLISHED: 2021-03-03
GLPI is open source software which stands for Gestionnaire Libre de Parc Informatique and it is a Free Asset and IT Management Software package. In GLPI before verison 9.5.4, there is a vulnerability within the document upload function (Home > Management > Documents > Add, or /front/documen...
CVE-2021-21313
PUBLISHED: 2021-03-03
GLPI is open source software which stands for Gestionnaire Libre de Parc Informatique and it is a Free Asset and IT Management Software package. In GLPI before verison 9.5.4, there is a vulnerability in the /ajax/common.tabs.php endpoint, indeed, at least two parameters _target and id are not proper...
CVE-2021-21314
PUBLISHED: 2021-03-03
GLPI is open source software which stands for Gestionnaire Libre de Parc Informatique and it is a Free Asset and IT Management Software package. In GLPI before verison 9.5.4, there is an XSS vulnerability involving a logged in user while updating a ticket.