Welcome to the Data Security Decoded podcast. In this episode, our host, Richard Cassidy, is joined by Carolin Desirée Toepfer, founder of Cyttraction and CISO as a Service for multiple organizations across Europe and North America. Carolin shares her journey from building websites and online communities to becoming a cybersecurity leader, offering insights into the unique challenges of European cybersecurity, AI security frameworks, and transforming cybersecurity training into data integrity training that better aligns with business needs.

Carolin's unique position as a CISO for multiple organizations gives her exceptional perspective on cybersecurity challenges across different industries and company sizes. Her approach focuses on addressing gaps in the European cybersecurity landscape where, according to Cisco studies, only 2% of companies are well-prepared. As founder of Cyttraction, an edtech company focused on cybersecurity training, she advocates for reframing security training to emphasize data integrity and digital identity protection, making it more relevant to business stakeholders.

Join Richard and Carolin as they explore the evolution of the CISO role in Europe, discuss the global skills shortage in cybersecurity, examine cultural differences in security awareness between North America and Europe, and share insights on effective training strategies that accommodate modern attention spans and learning preferences.

Episode Highlights:

00:02 - Introduction and CISO as a Service Role
01:57 - European Cybersecurity Landscape and Challenges
03:26 - Path to Becoming a CISO
06:17 - Regional Differences in Cybersecurity Approaches
09:53 - AI Governance and Business Impact
14:39 - Reframing Security Training for Business Alignment
19:20 - Measuring Training Effectiveness
24:01 - Future Outlook for Cybersecurity

Episode Resources

Richard Cassidy on LinkedIn
Carolin Desirée Toepfer on LinkedIn
Cyttraction Learning Platform
The State of Data Security: The New Rules Breaking the Banks report from Rubrik Zero Labs

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