The Gately Report: Orca Security to Invest More in Partners in 2024
Plus, Microsoft tracks a phishing campaign targeting Israel-Gaza war experts.
![Orca Security investing in partners Orca Security investing in partners](https://eu-images.contentstack.com/v3/assets/blt10e444bce2d36aa8/bltc840f9968f8c14e3/65ae8339391658040a9fe33a/Orca_Killer_Whale.jpg?width=700&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale)
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Channel Futures: How will your previous experience with Lacework, Dell and EMC come into play in this new role?
Raf Chiodo: For 20-plus years, I've had the opportunity to work with customers as they go through different technology transformation journeys as different opportunities through technologies have arisen for those customers. And I think my career is really just a progression of trying to find alignment with the right technologies that can help make a big difference for our customers. So I think Orca is the next great evolution for me to be able to represent a product that can really help our customers succeed and drive better business outcomes.
CF: What types of partners does Orca Security work with? Is it focused on particular types of partners?
RC: Our partner strategy spans across investments we make with the cloud service providers, SIs, managed security providers and then your traditional VARs. And depending on the customer and the segment that they're in, they've got an ecosystem of trusted advisors around them. And it's our job to make sure that we really align well to the partners that are adding value to our customers. Those partners are ones that have made some investments in the cybersecurity space, in the cloud security space. We don't get as much value out of the partners that just try to represent a catalog of 300,000 things and be everything to everybody. We're much more interested in working with those partners that understand how complicated the cloud security market is, and to help customers cut through that noise and focus on the use cases that they have to achieve and up-level their security posture. We want to align with partners in that.
CF: When it comes to cloud security and AI, what sorts of opportunities does Orca Security offer partners?
RC: I think Orca is a real leader and innovator in this space, specifically with leveraging AI, embedding AI in the platform that will allow our customers to understand their risk and understand the data of their own environment, and then also to leverage AI to help customers remediate risks and threats faster. The things we're doing on the platform right now are miles ahead of everybody else.
CF: AI in cybersecurity is a hot topic. Sounds like Orca Security is well on its journey with AI.
RC: I think what Orca realized early on is that there's a tremendous amount of data in the platform for customers to receive to understand what's going on in their environment, but it's not always very approachable. So leveraging AI and AI natural language interface to be able to quickly understand what the risks are in the environment and help understand what's going on in the environment, and to be able to have a customer that may not have the highest level of skilled people trying to do some of this work, it's a real advantage. It's along the theme of all of our customers are trying to do more with less and invest their dollars in other projects, but still maintain a very high level of security.
CF: Orca Security is included on the Forbes 2023 Cloud 100. What does that say about the company? What does that mean for partners?
RC: Regardless of the macroeconomic climate, Orca is continuing to grow at a pace bigger and better than the market overall. So I think it's just continued market validation. Customers vote with their wallets and Orca is continuing to win.
CF: What are the biggest challenges facing Orca Security’s partners and how will you tackle those?
RC: I think the challenge that a lot of partners have in this space is that it is a very fragmented industry, and it can get confusing and noisy. So our customers have to weed through a lot of different choices. ... Our challenge is to continue to simplify the value proposition that we have, so it's very clear for our partners and our customers what problems we can solve, what outcomes we can deliver, and how to help get them there with the best time to value. So it's really cutting through the noise. And if you go to Black Hat or you go to RSA, and you go to the security shows, there are hundreds and hundreds of vendors, and sometimes it's hard for customers to really understand, to make sense of all of these alternatives.
CF: Simplicity and ease of doing business are big buzzwords when it comes to partner programs. How does Orca Security fit into those?
RC: I think Orca has taken a really thoughtful approach to having a very simple pricing and packaging scheme that helps our customers move fast. It's very straightforward. And it's been well received in the last year or so before my time, and we're going to continue to look for opportunities where we can make things simple and easy for our customers and for our partners to understand. You know how to size an environment, how to deploy an environment and how to use the product for the most value.
CF: Many organizations are dealing with tight budgets. How is Orca Security helping partners meet those organizations’ needs?
RC: I think that the power of the Orca platform helps our customers accomplish great security outcomes with fewer internal staff. So our customers are looking for opportunities to get more productive, to be more operationally efficient. And we're a great way to work with a partner to help our customers get there. So maybe they need a smaller team, or maybe they need a team with fewer skills, less expensive skills to accomplish even better outcomes.
CF: What do you find most dangerous and surprising about the current threat landscape?
RC: It's constantly changing. It's an environment where the services provided and the cloud service providers are changing, that we have to keep pace with and keep investing in. The threats are changing and continuing to evolve, and become more complex. And then there's an increasing amount of scrutiny from a regulatory environment. So there are all these forces combined that make it very challenging for our customers, and frankly creates this opportunity for companies like Orca to come in. Not to mention more customers are leveraging more cloud. There are multiclouds based on their application needs that continue to create more complexity in the environments.
In other cybersecurity news …
Iran-linked threat actors are targeting high-profile researchers working on the Israel-Hamas conflict via a sophisticated social engineering campaign.
That’s according to Microsoft Threat Intelligence. The threat actor Mint Sandstorm, also known as APT35 and Charming Kitten, which has ties to Iranian military intelligence, is using phishing lures to entice targets into downloading malicious files, with the aim of stealing sensitive data.
The ongoing campaign is targeting experts deemed to have the potential to influence intelligence and policies in areas of interest to the Islamic Republic of Iran.
This campaign could be designed to gather different perspectives on the Israel-Hamas conflict from individuals across the ideological spectrum, according to Microsoft. The targets primarily work at universities and research organizations in Belgium, France, Gaza, Israel, the United Kingdom and the United States.
“In this campaign, Mint Sandstorm masqueraded as high-profile individuals, including as a journalist at a reputable news outlet,” Microsoft said in its blog. “In some cases, the threat actor used an email address spoofed to resemble a personal email account belonging to the journalist they sought to impersonate and sent benign emails to targets requesting their input on an article about the Israel-Hamas war. In other cases, Mint Sandstorm used legitimate, but compromised email accounts belonging to the individuals they sought to impersonate. Initial email messages did not contain any malicious content.”
Microsoft said it continues to update and augment its detection capabilities to help customers defend against this threat.
Balazs Greksza, threat response lead at Ontinue, said APT35 is a state-sponsored actor operating from Iran and as a result serving government agency and potential military objectives.
“Actors like APT35 have primary goals around geopolitics, national security [and] counterintelligence,” he said. “As openly shared by different intelligence agencies in the past, intelligence goals may shift rapidly based on the needs of national interests, current political and military leadership, and their decision and intelligence needs.”
Ngoc Bui, cybersecurity expert at Menlo Security, said while financial gain is a common driver in many cyberattacks, the nature and targets of this campaign suggest a primary interest in espionage and intelligence gathering, likely aligned with the geopolitical interests of Iran.
“The focus on high-profile individuals and specific research areas indicates a strategic approach geared more towards gathering intelligence and exerting influence rather than direct financial exploitation,” he said. “Historical patterns indicate that escalations in geopolitical tensions are often paralleled by increased cyber activities from involved parties, both directly and indirectly. Furthermore, the involvement of major players, whether directly or indirectly, tends to correlate with a rise in sophisticated and coordinated cyber operations. This trend underscores the importance of heightened vigilance and robust cyber defenses in times of geopolitical instability.”
IANS Research and Artico Search’s State of the CISO 2023-2024 Report shows heightened anxiety among CISOs, with many open to finding another job.
More than 660 CISOs provided data for the report. Additionally, research team members held conversations with over 100 CISOs to better understand the challenges CISOs face today and future opportunities.
At the outset of 2024, CISOs are experiencing a duality of anxiety and opportunity, which is attributed to reduced cybersecurity spending, increasing cyber breaches, the rise of generative artificial AI tools and stricter cybersecurity rules emphasizing disclosure requirements.
Among the report’s findings:
This year’s satisfaction ratings suggested heightened anxiety among CISOs. Between 2022 and 2023, the share of CISOs who are satisfied in their job and company fell by 10 points to 64%. Meanwhile, the share open to a job change increased by eight points to 75%.
Traditional CISO role characteristics may no longer meet the needs in this rapidly evolving landscape. This situation gives CISOs an opportunity to argue for a place in the executive ranks. Furthermore, the increased threat environment organizations face gives CISOs more ammunition to influence leaders outside their direct sphere of control.
Regulators now hold CISOs accountable for transparency and even fraud on behalf of their organizations. Despite the role expectations being elevated to C-level, CISOs struggle to be viewed as such, and the CISO role is frequently not part of the senior leadership team. Only 20% of all CISOs and 15% of public company CISOs are regarded as C-level executives, and just 50% engage with the board quarterly. CISOs with board access are more optimistic about budget and risk alignment. Only 28% without board engagement are satisfied versus 57% with at least infrequent or ad hoc board contact.
CISOs seek clear risk guidance from boards, but often don’t find it. Eighty-five percent of CISOs indicated their board should offer clear guidance on their organization’s risk tolerance for the CISO to act on. However, just 36% find that this is the case.
A seat at the table calls for increased business skills. Most CISOs build their leadership skills through executive coaching and formal leadership training. The total compensation of CISOs who are in or completed an executive coaching program exceeds those who haven’t by more than $200,000. Only 20% of CISOs receive internal mentoring from non-tech colleagues.
Nick Kakolowski, research director at IANS Research, said the pace at which the CISO’s scope is growing. CISOs are becoming de facto digital risk owners, and as organizations digitize more functions, CISOs are taking on a wider range of responsibilities.
“There’s a lot of pressure on CISOs right now as the market corrects to new expectations,” he said. “But, at the end of the day, this pressure represents a new opportunity. It’s a seat at the proverbial table that CISOs have been fighting for. These are growing pains and I won’t diminish that the challenge facing businesses and CISOs is very real. But we could look back at 2023 as a positive turning point for the industry.”
All the upheaval in the industry shouldn’t distract from the fundamentals, Kakolowski said.
“Most breaches occur because of basic security hygiene practices that have slipped through the cracks,” he said. “Building a strong foundation for the security program is essential in adapting to the changes taking place in the industry.”
IANS Research and Artico Search’s State of the CISO 2023-2024 Report shows heightened anxiety among CISOs, with many open to finding another job.
More than 660 CISOs provided data for the report. Additionally, research team members held conversations with over 100 CISOs to better understand the challenges CISOs face today and future opportunities.
At the outset of 2024, CISOs are experiencing a duality of anxiety and opportunity, which is attributed to reduced cybersecurity spending, increasing cyber breaches, the rise of generative artificial AI tools and stricter cybersecurity rules emphasizing disclosure requirements.
Among the report’s findings:
This year’s satisfaction ratings suggested heightened anxiety among CISOs. Between 2022 and 2023, the share of CISOs who are satisfied in their job and company fell by 10 points to 64%. Meanwhile, the share open to a job change increased by eight points to 75%.
Traditional CISO role characteristics may no longer meet the needs in this rapidly evolving landscape. This situation gives CISOs an opportunity to argue for a place in the executive ranks. Furthermore, the increased threat environment organizations face gives CISOs more ammunition to influence leaders outside their direct sphere of control.
Regulators now hold CISOs accountable for transparency and even fraud on behalf of their organizations. Despite the role expectations being elevated to C-level, CISOs struggle to be viewed as such, and the CISO role is frequently not part of the senior leadership team. Only 20% of all CISOs and 15% of public company CISOs are regarded as C-level executives, and just 50% engage with the board quarterly. CISOs with board access are more optimistic about budget and risk alignment. Only 28% without board engagement are satisfied versus 57% with at least infrequent or ad hoc board contact.
CISOs seek clear risk guidance from boards, but often don’t find it. Eighty-five percent of CISOs indicated their board should offer clear guidance on their organization’s risk tolerance for the CISO to act on. However, just 36% find that this is the case.
A seat at the table calls for increased business skills. Most CISOs build their leadership skills through executive coaching and formal leadership training. The total compensation of CISOs who are in or completed an executive coaching program exceeds those who haven’t by more than $200,000. Only 20% of CISOs receive internal mentoring from non-tech colleagues.
Nick Kakolowski, research director at IANS Research, said the pace at which the CISO’s scope is growing. CISOs are becoming de facto digital risk owners, and as organizations digitize more functions, CISOs are taking on a wider range of responsibilities.
“There’s a lot of pressure on CISOs right now as the market corrects to new expectations,” he said. “But, at the end of the day, this pressure represents a new opportunity. It’s a seat at the proverbial table that CISOs have been fighting for. These are growing pains and I won’t diminish that the challenge facing businesses and CISOs is very real. But we could look back at 2023 as a positive turning point for the industry.”
All the upheaval in the industry shouldn’t distract from the fundamentals, Kakolowski said.
“Most breaches occur because of basic security hygiene practices that have slipped through the cracks,” he said. “Building a strong foundation for the security program is essential in adapting to the changes taking place in the industry.”
Orca Security started 2024 with a new chief revenue officer, Raf Chiodo, who plans to invest more in the company’s partners and lean into them more in the coming months.
Chiodo previously was Lacework's vice president of Americas sales. Before his stint with Lacework, he was with Dell Technologies for more than three years, and with EMC for over 16 years.
Chiodo is responsible for all revenue-generating activities, including global sales, customer success and channel partner teams, to manage market demand for the company’s cloud-native application protection platform (CNAPP).
“As a sales leader, what you look for is a compelling value proposition and a part of the market that can really make a big difference for customers,” he said. “And I think the technology platform, the differentiators that Orca offers, it's just an incredible opportunity.”
Orca Security Poised for Continued Growth
Under Chiodo's leadership, Orca Security remains committed to executing on a 100% channel-led go-to-market strategy.
“I'm thrilled to see how mature Orca Security’s partner program is already,” he said. “There's a great realization inside the company that to best serve our customers, we have to work really well with the existing partner ecosystem that our customers are relying on. So I think with the investments that have already been made and some more coming around our partner program, our partner portal enablement, I think it's very mature already. And we're going to continue to lean into that.”
Chiodo said he looks forward to continuing to grow Orca Security’s business.
![Orca Security's Raf Chiodo Orca Security's Raf Chiodo](https://eu-images.contentstack.com/v3/assets/blt10e444bce2d36aa8/blt0b7ac3dbfd2e3808/65ae81ddc83969040a99926c/Chiodo_Raf_Orca_Security_2024.jpg?width=700&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale)
Orca Security's Raf Chiodo
“We're seeing fantastic growth across the Americas, EMEA and APAC, and I look forward to just continuing to see that balance growth,” he said. “I haven't had a chance to meet everybody personally, but I look forward to getting out in the field and seeing our business in the different theaters and segments, and to be a part of that growth.”
In the months ahead, Orca Security’s partners can expect more investments in enablement resources, and the features and functionality of its partner portal, and a continued investment in the value of the relationships in the field to make sure that “collectively, we're doing the very best job we can for our customers,” Chiodo said.
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