When it comes to cybersecurity and heightening cyber awareness, a main concern is the lack of understanding among CEOs and board members when it comes to cybersecurity. With cybercrime on the rise – on track to hit $2.1 trillion by 2019 according to Juniper Research – no company, industry or government is completely immune from a cyber-attack or data breach. While reports such as Verizon’s 2016 Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) provides its readers with invaluable information, much of it extends far beyond your average CEO’s foundational understanding of cybersecurity. Due to this lack of understanding among C-Suite executives when it comes to cyber, Cybervista – a subsidiary of Graham Holdings Company – has launched a cyber educational program designed for CEOs and board members. Cybervista focuses on the fact that while “CEOs may be receptive to the notion of learning about cyber, their biggest challenges are setting aside the learning time and finding training programs geared specifically to their needs.” The program, which launched earlier this year, is delivered in short segments, 15-20 minutes at a time, so CEOs can easily work it into their busy schedule. Secondly, the program uses plain English and business terms that your average CEO would understand and comprehend.
In fact, Amjed Saffarini, current CEO of Cybervista, claims to have known nothing about cybersecurity just a year ago. While previously working as President at Kaplin’s University Innovations group – a leading provider of educational services and another subsidiary of Graham Holdings Company – it was decided that Saffarini would become CEO of Cybervista, a new Graham business “focused on training in the burgeoning cybersecurity market.” In nearly a year, and thousands of hours later, Saffarini sits as an expert on cyber workforce issues which draws primarily from his background in education and training at Kaplin. Saffarini explains that the experience of teaching himself on cybersecurity A-to-Z is what helped him create their training program for CEOs and Board members.