Just like every other crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic has rocked the boats of most businesses. The fact that it has discouraged physical interactions has forced enterprises to embrace work from home initiatives. Most companies have had to increase their reliance on collaborative technology to keep their business operations afloat.

Leading brands with 50+ years of combined audit, cybersecurity, and information technology authority will deliver new modalities, expanded training portfolios, and B2B segment growth.

Across all industries, COVID-19 has tested our capacity to respond quickly and effectively to seismic changes in economic, social, and professional life. But while the cause of these challenges is unprecedented, the need for a nimble response is not new. In many areas of business, the global pandemic has not created new problems so much as it has revealed preexisting shortcomings—namely, the cumbersome processes and bloated bureaucracies that impede rather than propel work and make it difficult to respond rapidly to change.

The Coronavirus Crisis has precipitated a dramatic downturn in economic activity, which has the potential to increase the risk of fraud and wrongdoing. A new report on fraud highlights the important role that internal audit can play in detecting and deterring fraud.

Ever since Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in 2002—a response to major accounting scandals at such companies as Enron, WorldCom, Adelphia, Tyco, and others—internal auditors have been wringing their hands over their role in assuring compliance with the complex law.

Here are eight primary steps internal audit teams can apply to assist management and stakeholders throughout the organization to continuously improve accounting, financial reporting, audit, and governance initiatives.

Internal auditors maybe sitting in their home offices in pajamas, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t hard at work on helping their organizations’ respond to the coronavirus crisis. Instead, they are shifting into high gear to deal with the onslaught of issues the pandemic has wrought.

In the course of their work internal auditors often encounter resistance that can create friction with business units and other entities in the organization. The keys to eliminating hostilities can be found in the people, processes, communication, and relationships with audit clients.

As the situation regarding the coronavirus continues to deteriorate, organizations face supply chain disruptions, the challenge of employees working from home, and plunging demand for many products and services. Internal audit can position itself as part of the solution by tackling these five critical to-dos.

Ratings in audit reports can help focus stakeholder attention where it is needed. But some worry that they oversimplify findings or paint audited units in an unfair light.

An anonymous whistleblower hotline should be a critical piece of any organization’s anti-fraud efforts. Likewise, since the effectiveness of anti-fraud controls is a key area of concern for internal audit, auditors can and should be looking into company hotlines to ensure they are operating effectively.

A more agile internal audit function that can shift focus as risks evolve and organizational needs change isn’t just the audit function of the future; it’s what is needed right now.

As a newly appointed internal auditor, you might find yourself a bit lost. It’s not an easy job, and working with experienced colleagues might be a little intimidating. There is so much to learn. Here are ten basic things that as a new auditor you should expect to follow when that first assignment comes your way.

It’s becoming clear to most internal auditors that the profession is changing very rapidly. The strategies that have worked in the past will no longer be enough to carry out internal audit’s new mandate. To meet these challenges, internal audit must improve on three major fronts: innovation, new technology, and talent management.

It’s more important than ever to have a robust recruiting and retention program for internal audit to hire the right candidates with the right set of skills and to keep star performers from leaving for other jobs.

Tech-based processes can often seem like black boxes that are too complex for process improvement. It doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, there’s a lot of waste and inefficiency that gets built-in along the way, and internal audit can play a big role in identifying and eliminating it.

Is it possible to combine the role of chief audit executive with other jobs, such as the head of corporate compliance or risk management, without sacrificing the independence that’s a cornerstone of the audit function? Opinions are divided.

Boathouse Capital, a Philadelphia-based Private Equity firm, today announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Brett Shively as Chief Executive Officer for the MIS Training Institute (MISTI) and its partner company, LeaderQuest.  

Given the intense focus on corporate culture in the last few years as an important component in risk management, more companies are looking to behavioural science to get a better understanding of what drives human behaviours, both good and bad.

Companies are rapidly finding applications for blockchain technology, meaning internal auditors will need to assess those applications. To do so will require some foundational knowledge of how blockchain works and the risks associated with its use.

Risk culture is no longer perceived to be a compliance box to be ticked. Companies are lifting the lid on cultural and behavioural issues that affect the way people make decisions and manage risks as part of their day-to-day work.

Internal audit departments that pursue data analytics without fear will soon be expanding their capabilities and unlocking the powerful potential of what it can do.

A slew of new studies and reports find that companies still struggle mightily to get a handle on IT-related risks, such as cybersecurity, data governance, and digital privacy.

HR audits have evolved from a simple checklist of dos and don’ts or periodic affirmative action plans to a comprehensive, sustainable process that is an integral part of the organization’s internal controls, due diligence, and risk management function.

Ten things that internal audit can do when working with compliance to leverage the qualities of both functions and create value for the organization.

Internal audit leaders must be more resourceful in acquiring needed skills and capabilities to conduct audits in areas of emerging risk and new technologies.

Many internal audit shops are adopting Agile principles in an attempt to create a more flexible and customer-oriented audit function. And while the results have been promising, expect a few bumps along the way.

Many internal audit departments are struggling to keep up with fast-moving technologies and widespread change in the profession. Staying on track will require more than adopting new technology, it will involve adopting a new mindset.

Could a decades-old management strategy that helped U.S. and European companies respond to the gains in quality made by Japanese manufacturers in the 1980s somehow help internal audit shops improve their game?

Where, exactly, does responsibility lie in a modern corporation for ensuring that risks are being identified and managed?

A definitive guide to producing, using, and improving a risk heat map at your organization.

In the full video interview below, MISTI's Director of Instructional Technologies and Innovation, Shawna Flanders, discusses where internal audit stands today as it relates to cybersecurity, and offers up some tips on increasing collaboration between the audit and information security functions. 

In this video interview with MISTI's Dr. Hernan Murdock, he explains why micro-managing is a big problem in internal audit and offers up advice on how audit leaders can overcome it.

It's not only the information security department that needs to stay on top of cybersecurity regulations. Internal audit also plays a big role. In this interview with MISTI's Shawna Flanders, she discusses the regulations internal audit should keep top of mind.

People choose a line of work for a variety of reasons.  Sometimes it is because it pays very well, or it is what our parents steered us towards. It could be because it is the only job in town or because it is glamorous. Regardless of the circumstances and career path that brought you to internal audit, an important question begging for an answer is: Why do you stay?

Traditionally, internal auditing was done retroactively. While our methodology has relied on this practice and it has been used widely for a long time, one of the issues with this after-the-event approach is that the actions have already occurred. It is based on auditors focusing on issue detection.

Are you familiar with code signing? If not, in this full video interview Venafi's Senior Threat Intelligence Researcher Jing Xie provides us with a breakdown.

Doug Barbin, principal at Schellman and Company, discusses the challenges that security professionals face when it comes to security and privacy assessments, but also provides tips on which assessments bring in the most return on investment.

Receiving feedback is an essential element in every internal auditors’ development. In this feature article, MISTI's Dr. Hernan Murdock provides seven key practices that should be part of this process to make it most effective.

In this interview with Kelly York, security awareness manager at the McDonald's Corporation, she discusses the state of attracting and retaining talent in information security and also provides some helpful tips that could get you and your business over the hump when it comes to the topic.

Updating your risk management program is a critical component of becoming a successful security leader. InfoSec Insider caught up with Argo AI's CSO Summer Craze Fowler who shared her thoughts on the topic, as well as some proven tips.

There’s a big difference between a few butterflies and paralysing fear when it comes to public speaking. When it comes to giving a great presentation, it’s not just what you say, it’s not just how you say it, but it’s the combination of those two things along with the experience you provide and the feeling you leave your audience with that creates results.

Those entering the internal audit and compliance professions often wonder what they need to do to succeed in their new careers. There is a lot to learn. In fact, the general advice is to become lifelong learners. But there is also the constant pressure from within the department. Here, MISTI's Dr. Hernan Murdock lists nine skills and actions essential for success.

The work of internal auditors and compliance professionals is filled with frameworks, regulations, and policies and procedures documents that define the path for operational effectiveness. Follow those guidelines, manage risk effectively and the likelihood of success increases. But what about our own success?

Trend Micro's Vice President of Infrastructure Strategies William Malik shares his take on what simplicity looks like when it comes to cybersecurity awareness training in the business.

SyncDog CRO Brian Egenrieder discusses the current challenges that security leaders face when it comes to mobility in the enterprise and shares some important steps they can take to overcome them.

Your organisation has decided to take the important step of creating an internal audit function, and you’ve been tasked to build it. Building out teams from scratch is always a challenge, but internal audit departments have an especially important role.

Here’s the truth about editing: editing is vital to producing a good audit report. It’s also tricky and time-consuming. Editing includes content changes, proofreading, grammar, wording, format, structure, and multiple revisions.

Security experts Raef Meeuwisse and Ed Moyle provide a breakdown of tips you up-and-coming security leaders can leverage to have a successful start in the cybersecurity field.

In the full video interview below, Tonia Dudley, security solutions advisor at Cofense, provides us with a glimpse into the state of phishing attacks in 2019, and more importantly, what security professionals should be doing about it.

In part four of this four-part series on internal audit priorities in 2019, Internal Audit Insights caught up with Todd Shaffer, senior vice president and chief risk officer at Johnson Financial Group, who discussed how internal audit leaders are approaching cybersecurity issues today.

DeMISTIfying Security experts Ed Moyle and Raef Meeuwisse discuss recruitment and retention challenges in cybersecurity and offer up some advice for security leaders on the topic.

In part three of this four-part series on internal audit priorities in 2019, Internal Audit Insights caught up with Patti Puccinelli, vice president of audit advisory services at ManpowerGroup, who discussed why it’s so important for internal audit leaders to continually keep pace with the latest skills and competencies required for the function to achieve its objectives.

In the full video interview below, Ted Harrington, keynote speaker and executive partner at Independent Security Evaluators, provides his take on application security and shares tips on the subject with up-and-coming security leaders. 

In part two of this four-part series on internal audit priorities in 2019, Internal Audit Insights caught up with David Holland, director of internal audit at Modine Manufacturing, who shared his thoughts on the state of resources for the modern-day internal auditor. 

InfoSec Insider caught up with Trustwave SpiderLabs Principal Security Consultant Matt Lorentzen, who discussed the open source pentesting tool and provided us with a demo.

The modern-day CISO faces a multitude of challenges they must face head-on to build a sense of leadership and vision within the security and risk department. InfoSec Insider caught up with CISO Spotlight's Todd Fitzgerald, who offered up concrete tips up-and-coming security leaders can leverage when it comes to achieving organisational effectiveness.

Management is responsible for setting the organisation’s structure, allocating resources throughout the entity, overseeing the programs and processes, and monitoring the related objectives, risks, and controls. Yet, when business managers are asked about risks and controls, a troublingly high number of them at many organisations are unaware of these responsibilities.

Knowing how to approach buying cybersecurity vendors is a difficult task. There’s a lot to manage internally (budget, needs, fit) and it’s hard to know what kind of vendors or solutions would serve your organization best. The fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) experienced by cybersecurity vendors are especially troubling.

Rapid7’s Director of Research Tod Beardsley highlights what you should know about voting machine security and what more needs to be done for the approaching 2020 elections.

It’s easy to overlook your own grammar errors. But you’ll be a better writer if you become mindful of your writing and correct your own editing mistakes. Here are five common editing mistakes we all make or might have questions about. Maybe a couple will resonate with you.

In this follow-up episode, the DeMISTIfying Security experts provide you with proven tips that you can leverage to boost the cybersecurity budget within the business. Don't miss out on this episode.

Cybereason CSO Sam Curry shares how “black propaganda” is leveraged by foreign adversaries, why 2016 was a failure of imagination from a cyber standpoint, and what we should be prepared for leading into the 2020 presidential elections.

InfoSec Insider caught up with Cylance's Chief Security and Trust Officer, Malcolm Harkins, who shared why he believes leadership in information security today is sorely lacking, but more importantly, what needs to be done in order for today's security leaders to create an "ideal state" for their departments.

There are a slew of threats aimed at industrial control systems, and security warriors in that space need to constantly be on their toes. We caught up with Sergio Caltagirone, vice president of threat intelligence at Dragos, who shared how infosec pros in the ICS world can get started with threat profiling.

The work of internal auditors and compliance professionals is complex, challenging and often, unfortunately, under-appreciated by their clients. What makes matters even more stressful for these professionals is that their managers sometimes micro-manage them.

It’s no mystery that the world of cybersecurity constantly faces a massive challenge. It has to pre-empt attacks, predict how hackers will use new attack vectors, and defend their environment against all existing attacks and attacks that may not even exist yet. In this feature, we go over one of the more obscure, but dangerous and difficult attacks to defense against—airborne attacks.

Security departments have evolved tremendously over the years, but so have cyber threats. As organizations become more aware that nearly no one can be trusted, whose job is it to watch the watchers? At this year’s RSA Conference in San Francisco, InfoSec Insider caught up with Forcepoint's Dr. Richard Ford who dives into the topic.

In the latest edition of InfoSec Insider’s DeMISTIfying Security series, veteran experts Ed Moyle and Raef Meeuwisse discuss the state of cybersecurity as it relates to executive support within the business.

Evidence is something that provides proof and it proves or disproves something.  It is presented as verification of the facts at issue and generally includes the testimony of witnesses, and the examination of records, documents, and objects. This feature by MISTI's Dr. Hernan Murdock, examines the qualitative elements to consider when it comes to leveraging high-quality evidence.

Cyber swindlers are continually looking to reinvent themselves, and their methods are becoming savvier. InfoSec Insider caught up with Digital Shadows CISO Rick Holland on the recent research that his team has conducted on cybercrime extortion, and how security practitioners can secure their organisations don't fall prey to these attacks.

Organisations have struggled to gain control over privileged identity management—a challenge that has tripped up many security and risk departments and has caused major cyber incidents. If the title of this article caught your eye, chances are you’re grappling with this issue and are looking for some insights that will make your life a little easier.

Performance auditing is the review of a program or process, and the systems supporting it, to determine whether it is achieving the primary goals of efficiency, effectiveness, and economy in its use of available resources. These reviews are often done in government and non-profit entities, but they are equally important in the for-profit sector.

To become trusted advisors to management it would help if we spoke the same language they do. While auditors and compliance professionals often talk in terms of controls, and increasingly in terms of risk, managers and business leaders often talk in terms of costs, benefits, revenue, reputation, and market share.

Cybersecurity remains a persistent challenge in information technology, and for IT security professionals, AI and other tools are valuable for organically managing cybersecurity without depending on vendors that might have more sophisticated tools and experience using them.

While having strong IT security in place to secure sensitive data on devices and networks is critical, ensuring your organisation practices strong physical security is equally important. Organisations need to prevent attackers from being able to walk in and walking out with data, systems, physical documents, or worse – a new connection to your network as a persistent threat.

Internal auditing is a complex field of work that is undergoing significant changes. Today's internal auditors are tasked with managing their careers, so they remain relevant in the short and longer terms. Given this complex environment, it is not surprising that mentoring and coaching have emerged as essential tools to help auditors grow professionally.

Cyber law is focused on bringing more clarity to privacy questions that new technology introduce. It’s important for all security professionals to have a basic understanding of current and potential future cyber law concepts in order to stay compliant and ensure sensitive data stays safe.

Password security has undergone a significant transformation over the last few years. As a reaction to the insecure form of identity verification that is logging in with a password, technologies such as two-factor authentication (2FA), multi-factor authentication (MFA), and hardware keys. This begs the question—where does that leave passwords in 2019?

Transitions are those juicy, bite-size gourmet words that connect ideas, sentences, paragraphs, and even sections. Too often, we can misuse, overuse, or omit transitions. This article covers how to use transitions to improve clarity in your reports.

In this follow-up video, the DeMISTIfying Security experts discuss two recent containerisation-related issues and how the modern-day security warrior can venture into the unknown to effectively tackle challenges such as this.

Last month in an article about setting the stage for better decision-making we learned about four elements that you should be considering before you even form the words you want to say. This month it’s all about the messaging.

Recent incidents illustrate the risks that healthcare networks are subject to in today's ever-expanding cybersecurity threat landscape. In particular, securing networked medical devices in this environment can be challenging. 

One of the most overlooked, but essential, elements of the persuasive process is establishing a definite need in your to-be-persuaded-audience’s mind. In other words, how does the client know that they need what you have to offer? Here, we explore the topic.

So many vendors, so little budget. Security departments are constantly tasked to know how to properly allocate funds to staffing, resources, tools, solutions, software, vendors, third-party contractors, and more. Even an unlimited budget wouldn’t help as security departments can find themselves bloated with software or vendors, leading to an inefficiently run department.

As business processes become more complex, information more widely dispersed, and the risk environment more complicated, the need for internal auditors to adapt to this new environment becomes imperative. This is where rotation programs can really save the day.

Today, there are highly specialized training options offered both in-person and online in the form of meetups, webinars, formal courses, and in-house and external conferences. The attractiveness (cost, convenience, and specialty) of these alternative options has driven cybersecurity talent to steer towards education avenues outside of traditional academia.

The search for qualified, competent internal auditors remains a challenge for many audit departments. As internal audit leaders continue to struggle qualified additions to their teams, what areas should they be focusing on and what steps can they take? This feature story answers those questions.

When you’re talking information security among your peers, it sounds like a totally different language than the rest of your organization speaks. This puts infosec professionals in a bind. On the one hand, security vulnerabilities exist throughout the company. Yet you, alone, are carrying the burden of knowing just how serious it can get. That’s why it’s up to you to create an information security communication strategy.

From steering clear of marketing buzz to the impact of misinformation, DeMISTIfying Security hosts Ed Moyle and Raef Meeuwisse point out the security assumptions that could be catastrophic to any security practitioner’s role.

So, what exactly does an IT auditor do? In this article, we provide a broad breakdown of an IT auditor's responsibilities, the necessary skills to become one, how an IT auditor interacts with other roles throughout their organisation, and more.

Internal auditors must engage in lifelong learning. They are increasingly participating in webinars, consuming online content, and listening to podcasts. While all of these actions are conducive to learning, there is another learning opportunity that many internal auditors and compliance professionals may not be familiar with: Symposiums.

In this article, we’ll go over what devices infosec departments should have an eye on and how to tackle the challenge of BYOD head-on. For an expert’s perspective, we spoke to Georgia Weidman, founder of Shevirah, a mobile and IoT testing company.

Cybersecurity awareness training is a critical component to your security hygiene. The most effective training programs are offered frequently and use available frameworks, focus points, tools, and tactics to build a culture where cybersecurity is embraced, not avoided or shunned.

There are some common communication mistakes that junior auditors make. Lucky for you, this article is going to point these foibles out and show you how you can change the trajectory of your communication to show confidence, not self-consciousness.

We understand that some security professionals may not have the easiest time implementing the NIST Security Framework. That’s why we’ve created the “missing manual” on getting it right in this latest InfoSec Insider post.

Last week the DeMISTIfying Security hosts explored the Zero Trust model. This follow-up segment takes things one step further as security veteran Ed Moyle explains how you can get a jump on kickstarting Zero Trust within your organization.

In migrating to the cloud, many challenges are present, and perhaps one of the largest challenges is updating an organisation’s overall GRC program. Here, we've gathered a number of things that IT auditors should know about IT GRC in the cloud.

Much internal audit work has focused on financial transactions and controls. Now, many auditors are adding supply chain audits to their responsibilities. In this feature article, we've broken down some of the common risks associated with supply chains.

The only thing worse than having a huge problem is having a huge problem and not realising it. Believe it or not, many organisations are in the latter boat right now. Specifically, many organisations are undergoing a proliferation of secrets at a scale and scope that eclipses the ability of mechanisms and controls they may have in place to keep them protected.

The Three Lines of Defence Model provides a framework to clarify the involvement and alignment of multiple assurance providers acting on behalf of their client organisations. It has become increasingly common to have various risk and control professionals working side by side to help their organisations manage risk and increase the likelihood of achieving strategic and operational goals.

Last week we shared the first part of this two-part series on cyber threats in 2019. This week we wrap up the remainder of the insights we shared thanks to our conversation with subject matter expert Adrian Sanabria, VP of strategy and product at NopSec.

Emotet is a highly sophisticated malware with a modular architecture, installing its main component first before delivering additional payloads. In this contributed article, Darktrace's Max Heinemeyer, director of threat hunting, breaks down the threat.

As we work toward the thick of the year, we've compiled a list of which cybersecurity regulations could be impactful this year, some of the challenges that they could present, and the reasons behind some of the changes we've highlighted below.

In the latest edition of MISTI’s DeMISTIfying Security, Ed and Raef dissect the zero trust model. From the pros and cons, to the obstacles you may face rolling out this philosophical approach to security, this week’s segment will shed new light on this topic.

As fraud investigations get folded into the internal audit department, some audit shops are tempted to frame a fraud report in the same format and tone as the audit report. The idea couldn’t be more wrong. Read on for ways to present a full and succinct fraud investigation report using report design, content, and tone.

InfoSec Insider caught up with one SME that helped us put together a list of the looming threats your company should keep an eye on and how organisations can defend themselves accordingly. Here's a look at what you should have on your radar.

In internal audit, the methodologies of the past may have made the organization successful, but there is no guarantee that those same procedures will lead to success in the future. In this featured article, MISTI's Dr. Hernan Murdock highlights some examples of ways that innovation can help internal auditors, but most importantly, outlines how they can get started.

Every company has a different way to communicate and a different report format to use. Well, there is no best way – each format has its pros and cons and you have to weigh the benefits of each format for your audience.

The term threat hunting has been tossed around a lot, but what does it actually mean and can your cybersecurity playbook benefit from it? Many organisations are tapping into its benefits, so we've decided to provide you with a breakdown in this feature article.

Most advice people have regarding decision making is along the line of, “weigh your options”, “get outside advice from a trusted source”, or “look at the cost-benefit or ROI”. That advice is fine and dandy, but it ignores one key fact: If the stage on which the decision is made isn’t set appropriately, the decision may not be the best. Here are four steps to set the stage for productive conversations and more efficient decisions.

Social engineering is unique in the cybersecurity world as its scope of influence can vary widely on the software, hardware, and even psychological level. In this article, we’ll cover social engineering attacks and help you learn from recent developments in the space.

In last week's segment, Ed and Raef discussed some of the major developments in infosec in 2018. This week, they take out their crystal ball and look into 2019, sharing their thoughts on what many practitioners could expect.

Technology has impacted quite a lot, but privacy is likely what hits closest to home for everyone. Internal Audit Insights catches up with IHS Markit Internal Audit Director Tony Redlinger, who discusses what the state of privacy is today, and more importantly, what impact it has on the modern-day IT auditor.

Artificial intelligence is found in homes across the globe, and it's also being leveraged by troves of organisations across the country. But how mature is the technology and how open should you be to adopting it as part of your security strategy? In this exclusive interview, we catch up with one expert who breaks it down for us.

Fraud costs organisations millions of dollars each year. Simply Google the phrase “fraud scheme,” and you will discover more news stories than you have time to read. If auditors do not detect and stop a fraud scheme, they have cost their organisation real money. So, another question for you: Do you want to explain to your audit committee why your department did not detect a $63 million fraud?

You’ve read a bazillion articles on data analytics theory (ho-hum) in auditing. And we'll be the first to say that we've written a variety on this site. But this time around, let’s focus on how to actually use those data analytics in a single audit area: risk assessments. 

In the latest installment of InfoSec Insider’s DeMISTIfying Security series, security experts Ed Moyle and Raef Meeuwisse return to review the major breaches, developments, and takeaways that you can get from information security events in 2018.

Internal Audit Insights catches up with Nancy Luquette, senior vice president and chief risk and audit executive at S&P Global, who shares her take on the state of women in internal audit in 2019 and the challenges many female practitioners face, but more importantly, how they can overcome them.

Like it or not, the digital transformation era is here. But what does that actually mean--and more importantly--what does that mean to you? We caught up with Zscaler's Business Value Consulting Leader, Jason Georgi, who broke it down for InfoSec Insider.

As business processes become more complex, information more widely dispersed, and the risk environment more complicated, the need for internal auditors to adapt to this new environment becomes imperative.

What's the state of artificial intelligence in the enterprise today? More importantly, how can the security and risk department benefit from its benefits to measurably reduce risk within the business? InfoSec Insider caught up with Neil Larkins, CTO at Egress Software, who breaks it down for us.

Internal Audit Insights caught up with Jami Shine, corporate and IT audit manager at Quiktrip Corp, who shared some proven advice on how non-technical auditors can overcome some of the challenges associated with IT risks.

InfoSec Insider catches up with the Cloud Security Alliance's Jim Reavis, who shares what security leaders should be focusing on when it comes to cloud security in 2019. You'll want to take note of these insights and predictions.

As 2018 wraps up, InfoSec Insider looks back at some of the most popular articles we've produced for our loyal audience. From communicating security metrics to the board and making sense of attack patterns, to key areas that you should focus your cybersecurity strategy on, here's a list of the top 10 articles.

And just like that, another year has gone by. We've had a blast providing you with insights all throughout the year, covering audit report writing, project management, and coverage on emerging technology. Here we've compiled a list of the most read articles.

Security practitioners that are looking to migrate their business to the cloud in a successful manner have to consider quite a lot. That's why InfoSec Insider caught up with security leader and industry veteran Mark Arnold during this video interview where he quickly breaks down what you should and shouldn't be doing when it comes to the topic.

Communication's expert Jill Schiefelbein chats with Internal Audit Insights and offers up her take on what makes audit interviews so difficult for the modern-day internal auditor, and also offers up specific advise you can use during your next audit interview to ensure you're navigating those encounters effectively. 

A CISO’s list of responsibilities are vast. They need to protect, defend, and identify any risks and potential attacks that may hit their company’s environment. However, knowing what needs protection is its own challenge.

Effectively closing the audit plan and landing on specific action items to pursue can be a challenge. In this contributed article, Workiva's Ernest Anunciacion provides three steps to close this year's audit plan and prepare for next year.

Data analytics is being leveraged more than ever by internal audit departments, but for those that haven't jumped on the bandwagon yet, this interview with CVS Health's head of data analytics explains the benefits, challenges, and misconceptions tied to the technology.

Today's IT playing field implores a higher state of alertness, not only within your enterprise but also outside of it. However, when it comes security, not all vendors are created equal. Some very likely have inferior security hygiene and practices that can affect you big time. 

InfoSec Insider catches up with Debbie Hoffman, CEO of Symmetry Blockchain Advisors at the CSA Congress event, who clarifies what blockchain means to security leaders today, and any privacy implications they should be aware of.

In this edition of the Audit Writer's Hub, we specifically tackle some of the pesky nothings – unimportant sentences, filler phrases, and negative phrasing – that creep into our writing and how to get rid of them.

The idea behind collaborative security is to change the security and threat landscape from the daunting “one vs. many” to “many vs. many,” embracing the power of knowledge and collaboration to protect valuable data.

MISTI’s Dr. Murdock shares what the status of the internal auditor is today, in addition providing some key audit leadership techniques that many up-and-coming audit leaders are commonly unaware of.

In this walkthrough, InfoSec Insider experts Ed Moyle and Raef Meeuwisse demonstrate one useful exercise that can aid security practitioners in getting a lay of the land in their organisation, serving as the perfect first step in ultimately measuring and reducing information security risks.

The government has urged the private sector to offer agencies secure cloud solutions through the FedRAMP accreditation, which establishes baseline standards for security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring. Here, we provide six key considerations to help guide FedRAMP accreditation efforts.

InfoSec Insider SMEs Ed Moyle and Raef Meeuwisse are back, but this time they're talking fundamentals. If you're an up-and-coming security warrior, you'll definitely want to heed this advice from the two infosec experts.

Professional scepticism is a critical component of an internal auditor's duty of care that applies throughout any engagement.  It's an attitude that includes a questioning mind and a critical assessment of the appropriateness and sufficiency of audit evidence. Here are the three key elements of scepticism you should know

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In this video interview with Internal Audit Insights, Constance Snelling, director of IT risk at Jackson National Life, offers up the essential skills that are needed to be a successful IT auditor today and how this ties into performing an integrated audit.

RPA, robotics, robots, bots … as internal auditors you have undoubtedly been hearing this terminology tossed around more and more. What exactly is it? Why is it such a hot topic? Here we answer those questions.

As a security practitioner, we're sure you've heard of the benefits that open source intelligence (OSINT). But what exactly is it and how can you leverage it as it relates to your current security strategy? This article answers that question and more.

Internal Audit Insights catches up with Ford Winslow, CEO of ICE Cybersecurity, to discuss what the “speed of business” has had on GRC controls, and what IT auditors should prepare for.

The balanced scorecard is a system used to make sure business operations are aligned with the organization’s mission, vision, and strategy. Since it uses several measures to determine success, it helps those involved to balance what is achieved with how it is achieved. Here's how.

This will probably be a contentious point for some, but there are situations where a penetration test isn’t the best use of an organization’s resources. Here, we examine what is (and isn't) a pentest, and what its goals should be depending on your organization's needs.

Cyber threats are top of mind for board members, but communicating cyber threat intelligence may not be the easiest task for security leaders. In this recent interview with Tim Callahan, senior vice president and global security officer at Aflac provides some helpful tips that could go a long way.

There tends to be a fair amount of confusion when it comes to a fraud risk identification approach versus an experience-based approach but here we set out to create a list of universal definitions intended to clarify how and why you might use this approach.

IT audit is only beginning to familiarize itself with DevOps as more organizations begin to deploy successful programs. But is it fair to say that DevOps and compliance go hand in hand? In this video interview with Atlassian Risk Futurist Guy Herbert, he gives his take on the topic.

As auditors, we all know that internal audit is uniquely positioned to understand where risks lay within an organization. But sometimes audit doesn’t get the opportunity to communicate the company’s risks to a broader audience. Here, we share a few ideas to help internal audit build bridges between knowing, communicating, and fixing risk in a company.

Threat intelligence has transformed the information security world for the better but it’s not always leveraged in the best way possible by organisations and departments. InfoSec Insider spoke to threat intel expert Karl Sigler to get a sense of how organisations can maximize threat intelligence for their organisation.

InfoSec Insider catches up with Armis co-founders Yevgeny Dibrov and Nadir Izrael who discuss the current climate as it relates to IoT security, and offer up some dos and don’ts when it comes to connected devices within the enterprise.

Many internal audit teams are not using video conferencing and virtual meetings to their advantage. When they're set up for success, research shows that virtual teams can be more effective in solving quick, simple problems than face-to-face teams.

Conducting penetration testing via simulated attacks on your organisation's network is the best way to help your business evaluate the strength of your network security protocols and identify any backdoors, weaknesses, and gaps between different security tools, and prioritise risk. This contributed article explains why.

While patching vulnerabilities seems like a “low-hanging fruit” task for many security practitioners, it seems as though many still fail to do so. In this interview with application security expert Chris Eng, he highlights the common blind spots associated with vulnerability management.

As an internal auditor, it’s not just your words, it’s the absence of words or untimely words that could still convey a message to an audit client. It’s not only your actions, but it’s also the lack of action. All of these aspects result in communication. Communications expert Jill Schiefelbein explains more.

As Dirty Money Constellations continue to move from the “Islands of Shame” to the re-emerging epicentres of power, should we just be passive observers or is there something we can do?

A great deal has changed over the years when it comes to risk, including the willingness and interest of CAE’s, Audit Committees and Boards to talk about risk. As part of the increase in dialogue relating to risk and risks on the horizon much has been written and discussed. Here, Experis's Alec Arons consolidates that information.

Ntrepid Corporation’s Chief Scientist Lance Cottrell chats with InfoSec Insider and offers up the major dos and don’ts tied to password management, as well as pinpoints the significant weaknesses in some of the systems we’ve come to rely on heavily.

NSS Labs CEO Vikram Phatak speaks with InfoSec Insider and offers up tips to up-and-coming security professionals on how to make smart and effective cybersecurity solution purchasing decisions. From blocking out buzzwords and marketing jargon to building a great team, here’s what you need to know.

Data privacy and protection is an often underappreciated aspect of information security, but in many ways, it provides the foundational groundwork for a well-established security environment that offers internal and external reassurance. Here's why and how you should train up your team.

Many organisations are still failing to effectively audit areas such as cloud security or even social media. So what areas should you be covering and why? This article answers questions tied to that topic. Here you'll find the top IT risks that consistently vex companies and protect your assets.

Histograms are a very powerful tool to analyze data because they show the distribution of a continuous variable in a diagram and their appearance is similar to bar graphs. In this feature article, MISTI's Dr. Hernan Murdock explains how internal auditors can leverage them.

Persuasion is an important aspect of internal auditing that doesn’t receive enough attention or coverage. Internal auditing is done to verify that conditions and practices are as expected, and to identify opportunities for improvement within organizations.

We’ve seen the rules for data security change from relatively simple policies, such as simple access controls, to much more complex policy requirements with the implementation of GDPR. This article’s intended to cover three new perspectives that will influence data protection controls in the coming years.

Is serving as an advisor and maintaining internal audit’s essential responsibility of objectivity, free of management influence, possible? Spoiler alert: Yes. And it’s both necessary and crucial to the internal audit profession’s standing in any organization.

On Tuesday InfoSec Insider kicked off a how-to video series that focuses on topics surrounding the challenges that our readers face on a daily basis. In this companion video, security expert Ed Moyle provides a deep dive on how you can protect your organization from cryptocurrency mining malware and cryptojacking.

In a perfect world, the client is receptive, understands each recommendation, and takes immediate corrective action. But we all know that perfect world doesn’t exist. In this informative feature, communications expert Jill Schiefelbein explains what internal auditors can do to make audit clients more receptive to their communication.

What's the best way to detect network risks and other vulnerabilities from cyber threats? If you guessed a pen test, then you're right. In this feature article, we've created a no-nonsense that answers pertinent questions about penetration testing.

Security experts Ed Moyle and Raef Meeuwisse dissect the topic of cryptocurrency mining malware and cryptojacking; what it means to you as a security professional and how you can protect the enterprise from it.

In this second installment of our two-part series on vendor overbilling, we look at how to use fraud data analytics designed to uncover a complex fraud scheme and the fraud audit procedures designed to provide credible evidence.

What's the best way to detect network risks and other vulnerabilities from cyber threats? If you guessed a pen test, then you're right. In this feature article, we've created a no-nonsense that answers pertinent questions about penetration testing.

Fraud expert and MISTI instructor, Leonard Vona, selected a complex corruption scheme and a complex overbilling scheme to illustrate how fraud auditing can detect even the most complex schemes.

Arctic Wolf’s Sam McLane sits with InfoSec Insider at Black Hat, a security conference in the US, to discuss the major dos and don’ts when it comes to incident response, in addition to some misconceptions that some security practitioners may have on the topic

Internal Audit Insights catches up with Yulia Gurman, Director of Internal Audit and Corporate Security at the Packaging Corporation of America on the common questions that audit committee members have tied to cybersecurity, and what IT auditors should prepare for.

InfoSec Insider catches up with Trustwave SpiderLabs Threat Intelligence Manager Karl Sigler on the company’s latest open source tool which enables penetration testers and red teasers to scrape social media data.

Internal Audit Insights catches up with Ford Winslow, CEO of ICE Cybersecurity, to discuss what the “speed of business” has had on GRC controls, and what IT auditors should prepare for.

As internal auditors increase their use of data analytics to better understand process characteristics, isolate issues and perform more accurate root cause analysis, the Pareto Diagram continues to grow as a useful tool for them.

IT audit expert Mark Thomas, president of Escoute Consulting, chats with Internal Audit Insights on the impact that cloud migration has had on the business, and shares the major Dos and Don'ts that IT auditors should know about GRC in the cloud.

What is the bottom line from a security perspective when it comes to mobile payments? In the current state of the ecosystem, mobile security expert Aaron Turner offers up his take and advice on the topic.

The balanced scorecard is a system used for planning and management to make sure business operations are aligned with the organization’s mission, vision, and strategy. In this  featured article, MISTI's Dr. Hernan Murdock explains how you can use it to your advantage.

As the business world changes at an accelerating rate, auditors need to keep up or risk becoming irrelevant and unable to provide the insight that will allow their organizations to succeed. That means they’ll need to continually add to their skills and knowledge.

GDPR was a major focus for many organizations this year. Whether it has been extensive business process mapping, understanding the purposes of personal data, or defining its scope. But now that it's here, what should security professionals focus on next?

Organizations are accumulating large amounts of data and internal auditors are rapidly increasing their mining for, and use of, these sizable data sets. This proliferation of data raises the question of how to extract meaning from it all.

Threat intelligence expert Dave Ockwell-Jenner discusses how organizations have changed the way they approach threat intelligence, and provides the primary Dos and Don’ts associated with developing a successful threat intelligence program.

With distributed workforces and flexible workstyles, virtual team meetings are becoming commonplace in the internal audit function. Many times, though, virtual meetings aren’t taken with the same level of seriousness as in-person meetings are.

Summer will be over before you know it and for many of you, it might be time to hit the road again for business travel. Before you pack up all of your devices, you might want to keep some of this advice in mind to ensure your data is secure.

As the number of blockchain implementations continues to grow, internal auditors will need to learn about both the promise and risk this technology offers. So what exactly is blockchain technology and what does it mean to you as an internal auditor? This article answers that question.

Given the skills gap in information security, it's important for cybersecurity managers to diversify and expand the skill base of their team members. Here, we highlight how they can do it from a practical point of view.

The Cyber Threat Alliance’s Chief Analytic Officer Neil Jenkins provides update on the state of information sharing in 2018 and provides some insight on the steps security practitioners can take if they’re interested in sharing their threat data.

Summer will be over before you know it and for many of you, it might be time to hit the road again for business travel. Before you pack up all of your devices, you might want to keep some of this advice in mind to ensure your data is secure.

The European Union’s GDPR is officially in effect, but that’s likely not the last regulation that will be implemented that has an impact on the internal audit function. Here’s what you should consider five years from now.

The presentation skills that you were likely taught in high school and college in no way prepared you for the reality of delivering reports in front of boards and audit committees. This article is your crash-course in small group presentations and gives you two key areas to consider.

Rotational auditing has been a fishing hole for years. The pros and cons have been fished around too. And then fished around some more. Auditors have a way of fishing. But paddling deeper into audit's consulting water, rotational auditing could provide a venue for teaching risk awareness.

Developing a threat hunting program may be challenging, but it doesn’t have to be. In this feature article, one subject matter expert provides us with a glimpse into her experience on the topic and what you can expect. 

Threat modeling is essential to becoming proactive and strategic in your operational and application security. 

TalaTek’s Baan Alsinawi provides an update on the state of third-party risk management as it relates to IT auditors and sheds light on the hidden traps they should look out for as it relates to trusted business partners.

CA Veracode’s Chris Wysopal discusses how the 2016 presidential election hack broadened the horizon on how security warriors think about defending their data and offers up advice on what they should consider when it comes to protecting sensitive information.

Escoute Consulting President Mark Thomas dives into the topic of communication challenges within the enterprise, why they exist among IT audit and cybersecurity, and the steps you can take to ensure those silos are broken down.

Cylance’s Colt Blackmore discusses why leveraging AI isn’t limited to purchasing an out-of-the-box solution and details the critical steps that security practitioners should take to successfully utilizing the technology to their organization’s advantage.

Information drives modern organizations, so it is imperative that metrics be used that give management objective information. In this instructive article by MISTI's Dr. Hernan Murdock, he advises on how internal auditors can do just that.

Trustwave’s Karl Sigler discusses the state of cyber threats in 2018 and suggests what areas of your security strategy you should focus on to take proactive steps in measurably reducing risk within the business.

Fastpath’s Keith Goldschmidt discusses who the real owners of risk are within the enterprise, but also offers up insight on what IT audit can do to help streamline communication and do their part in creating a “risk culture” within the business.

When designing continuous auditing procedures, auditors and management must think through what the metrics are, and what thresholds would trigger the auditors’ desire to gain a better understanding of operational issues.

It's up to security professionals to infer security significance of all the events security solutions report. The first step to arriving at an answer to this intractable problem is teaching our security tools to understand us. Advancements in Natural Language Processing could help.

XebiaLabs’ Robert Stroud highlights what it is that IT audit needs to know about DevOps, why they should care, and offers up ways in which they can approach DevOps in a constructive manner that ultimately reduces risk in the organization.

After 25 years in internal audit, I have come to the conclusion that excellent audit planning is essential to ensuring an effective audit. What is a successful audit? A good measure is whether both audit management and the auditee feel good about the end results.

SAP CSO Justin Somaini discusses how the role of the CISO has evolved into what it is today, and what up and coming security leaders should prepare for once they take charge of a security program at a major organization.

The dark web is one of those elusive subjects that can often get misinterpreted. We spoke to Reclamere's Connie Mastovich to get her expert take on what the dark web is, what risk it poses to companies, and how to protect yourself from it.

Onspring’s Jason Rohlf discusses how technology has impacted the internal auditor of today, but also offers tips on how auditors can stay ahead of the curve, rather than play catchup.

Farsight CTO Merike Kaeo discusses why DNS is still be underutilized as a security tool today, shares some examples of lessons-learned that could apply to you, and provides steps you can take to ensure you’re taking advantage of your DNS infrastructure.

In this featured post, we speak to TrustedSec Founder Dave Kennedy who offers up advice on how you can set up your security department’s defenses to respond and defend against common attacks.

According to MISTI’s annual Internal Audit Priorities Report, internal audit leaders are in need of hiring outside assistance for challenges they face surrounding IT security. Here, we share a few tips to help you find the best IT consultant for your needs.

Numbers and fancy charts are only able to tell part of the story for internal auditors. If you want your reports and your data to come alive for your clients, you need to make your words matter. Words, when it comes to driving action, are your most valuable currency. Here's why.

Is your organization adequately equipped to identify anomalous patterns across the network? If you're doubtful, it may be time to try out alternative models that will help you detect previously unknown attacks.

Cisco's Edna Conway shares her insight on what infosec leaders can do to ensure that security becomes an active discussion about the way you operate within the business, rather than an added bolt-on feature.

Internal auditors have been working toward shedding the "corporate cop" label given to them within the enterprise. But what is a trusted advisor? What do they do and what behaviors are necessary to become a trusted advisor?

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 Section 301 requires publicly-traded companies to have a whistleblowing program.  But, how do we know if the program is effective? This article should help get you on your way.

When salary is fixed and the perks are what a Gen Xer would like but maybe not a millennial (i.e., catered lunches, unlimited paid time off, yoga hour), how does an audit shop change their philosophy to cater to the younger crew? Below we explore different ways to motivate a millennial auditor.

Bugcrowd’s Keith Hoodlet outlines the importance of attack driven development and offers up the key steps security practitioners should take for this approach to have a positive impact on their overall security strategy.

Media communication in the face of a cybersecurity incident often gets the shaft in favor of incident handling, but what you don't handle can come back to haunt you.

To continually operate more efficiently and add greater value to the business, internal audit has to boost its performance throughout each stage of the audit cycle. The guidelines below can help you improve the risk assessment, planning, execution, and reporting stages of the audit cycle.

We recently discussed the intersection of emotional intelligence and strategic intelligence. Here are some more common strategic areas to look at. One of these may be similar to your company, or maybe you have some additional strategic areas too. We’d love to hear about them.

Uber’s Melanie Ensign discusses the relationship between the communications function and infosec teams and offers up some uncommon communication tips for security leaders that may have a skewed view of the communications department within their organization.

Infusing an audit with strategic intelligence can be a little uncomfortable. But a little stretch does an auditor (and the company) good. Here, we've provided a few tips to articulate the big picture to your team and your auditee.

Given the troves of education information, training, and technology available to security professionals, you’d think they’d be a step ahead of malicious actors. But this overabundance of information may actually be causing more harm than good. Here’s what one expert had to say about the “fog of more.”

Cybersecurity staffing requires more than simply finding enough people to accomplish tasks.

Cybersecurity conferences often lead to inbox overload, but they don't have to if the onsite experience is managed correctly.

Cybersecurity teams seem to understand their biggest areas of challenge, yet the action to put effort behind remediating those problems falls short.

Internal audit is positioned to help evaluate risk that arises from working with vendors. Here we outline steps for determining which vendors to audit and what to focus on during the audit.

InfoSec Insider catches up with one threat expert who discusses why security professionals should consider a proactive threat hunting model, and outlines how they can take that approach.

Effective communication, teamwork, and accountability are key ingredients of efficient programs, processes, and projects. Unfortunately, many organizations suffer due to a misunderstanding of who’s responsible for what. Here, Dr. Hernan Murdock details how RACI Charts can help internal auditors overcome these challenges.

Auditors in search of a great decision-making tool to identify the forces for and against a course of action should look no further than Force Field Analysis. In this feature by MISTI's own Dr. Hernan Murdock, he details how internal audit can leverage this technique.

Today's threat landscape is like a tentacled sea monster that security practitioners have to battle on a daily basis. In this feature story, we highlight the top five most likely cyber risks to organizations today.

Jonathan Sander addresses why security teams fail at controlling privileged identities, and what they should be doing that won't upset the apple cart.

There is no question that the cybersecurity job market is hot, but not any old recruiter is suited to help you with your hiring needs.

Learn why the virtual CISO is quickly becoming an attractive option for enterprises.