Introducing women with a deep interest in cybersecurity

Currently, I am in the R&D department of Acronis. Most of my day involves working on the different microservices that make up Acronis’ products. I do a mix of designing of the service, including designing how the different services can communicate with us, and also the actual implementation of the service itself. I also occasionally volunteer to help out at events to promote cybersecurity and Acronis to the public.

What brought you to the cybersecurity industry?

When I was still a student in DigiPen, there were a few peers and seniors that were interning and working at Acronis. I was recommended by one of my groupmates to join Acronis. I knew that I did not want to join a game company and I had wanted to challenge myself and see if cyber security was something I could pursue.

What were your defining moments in this industry, and factors or guidance that helped you achieve them?

It feels like I was at the right place at the right time. To be honest, I came into the industry with close to no knowledge of what cybersecurity is. After the recommendation from my friend, I joined Acronis and started learning the ropes of what the team was doing. It was a rough start as I had no idea what I was developing or how my work was used in Acronis’ products. I was really thankful to have a great mentor who encouraged me and always went the extra mile to explain the bigger picture and made sure that I understood what was going on. He also actively encouraged me to take on more challenges and choose to work on tasks that I have not tried before or was interested in. This allowed me to grow as a person and gave me the confidence to try out new tasks and volunteer for more opportunities within the company. I am also very grateful to be asked to represent Acronis to join the Women in Tech initiative by AiSP. This opened up a huge number of opportunities for me to learn more about cybersecurity and meet more like minded ladies.

What is it that you love most about your role?

I love that my role allows me to explore and work on different parts of the service. I am allowed to further my interests in database design, while at the same time allows me to work on other areas that are still a little lacking. I am able to work on my presentation skills with the different reviews and knowledge sharing sessions within the company. Most importantly, I love that I am able to code. I have discovered my passion for programming about 9 years ago and I have loved it ever since.

Prominent Cybersecurity trends:

What are some of the trends you have seen in the market lately, and what do you think will emerge in the future?

This might be a little out of topic, but I personally feel that there should be more innovations and initiative centered upon cybersecurity for the elderly and children. There should be more education and products that protect them. As millennials, we grew up alongside the internet but there is a real gap that the younger and older generations face when it comes to picking up what’s safe and what’s not. There has been too many reports of them falling for fake news and viral trends that put their lives at risk.

Females in Cyber Security

What can we do to encourage more women to join the cybersecurity sector?

I think that there should be more support for people that would like to join the industry. There could be more opportunities for mentorships, where companies can be subsidised to groom new talent under a learn on the job scheme. There is also a real stereotype where women can not code. I feel that there should be more support for women who want to take this step, whereby we can create a special class just for ladies so that they do not feel the stress of being the only girl in the class.

Final thoughts

How can you debunk the myth that cybersecurity is only for men? Is there any indication this stereotyping is changing?

I am immensely grateful for the opportunities that opened up for me but I am also mindful that not everyone is able to get the same kind of support and opportunities. I hope that through my involvement in Acronis and Ladies in Cyber by AiSP, that I can inspire and guide more ladies to join the industry and to provide a platform for them to have a conversation and hopefully meet more people and get more opportunities.