Information Security Industry Awards and Pay-for-Play PR: Just Say No?
If you pay for the publicity, will they come?
Tony Bradley writes in Forbes that The Cybersecurity Burnout Crisis Is Reaching The Breaking Point. He astutely notes that the role of cybersecurity leaders has never been more vital — or more stressful.
But even with all that stress, it’s a great industry for those who want their self-esteem validated. Hardly a week goes by that I don’t get an email about being nominated for an award or entry into an industry who’s who directory.
I recently moderated a Zero Trusts Given channel webinar, Information Security Industry Awards and Pay-for-Play PR: Just Say No? on the topic. Industry veterans Lee Kushner and Ira Winkler had a lot of interesting points, including a bit of a point/counterpoint on the topic.
Lee noted that when it comes to awards, they should be a footnote, not a headline.
Ira observed that when trying to find a new position, in the crowded marketplace of job seekers, these awards can perhaps help the person stand out.
I noted that there are three types of awards. At the very bottom are vanity press publications that are read by very few people. I detailed that in my article, You’re So Vain — Why Pay For a Cover Story About You?, and wrote how to avoid getting scammed in the very profitable corporate awards industry.
At the top are awards such as the Association for Computing Machinery Turing Award for contributions of lasting and major technical importance to computer science. Past winners include Tim Berners-Lee, Dennis Ritchie, RSA (Ron Rivest, Adi Shamir & Len Adleman), and other worthy winners. A look at the list of past winners is indeed a veritable computing Hall of Fame.
In the middle are those awards and who’s who directory inclusion offers, which are, if not quid pro quo, pretty close.
For example, there is a company that is producing videos of “Who’s Who in Cybersecurity”. The email sent out last month said that if they responded in a timely manner, they would qualify for a reduced rate of $2,800.
Assuming all 100 paid that reduced rate, that is $280,000. Even with costs associated with production, which is almost entirely automated, there is a large profit margin. Showing yes, there’s a lot of money to be made appealing to people’s information security vanity.
So, should you pursue these awards? Watch the webinar, Information Security Industry Awards and Pay-for-Play PR: Just Say No? and decide for yourself.
