Tanya Janca
Building Security Champions
#1about 3 minutes
Why security teams must scale through developer collaboration
The significant ratio of developers to security professionals necessitates scaling security programs by empowering developers as champions.
#2about 5 minutes
What a security champion is and what they do
A security champion acts as the primary security advocate, communicator, and first line of defense within a development team.
#3about 4 minutes
Recruiting volunteer champions with manager support
Attract willing volunteers by creating opportunities for them to show interest and ensuring you have manager buy-in from the start.
#4about 6 minutes
Keeping champions engaged through inclusion and trust
Keep champions engaged by involving them in security incidents, sharing sensitive information to build trust, and giving them early access to new tools and policies.
#5about 7 minutes
How to effectively train your security champions
Focus training on practical skills champions need, such as secure coding, threat modeling, relevant policies, and using security tools effectively.
#6about 4 minutes
Coaching champions and setting clear delegation rules
Use a coaching approach for continuous support and clearly define what security tasks can be delegated to champions versus what must remain with the security team.
#7about 3 minutes
The importance of recognizing your champions' work
Formally recognize champions' efforts through public praise, certificates, and direct feedback to their managers to ensure their extra work is valued.
#8about 2 minutes
Using rewards to motivate and value your champions
Reinforce good security practices by rewarding champions with gifts like books and training, team-building events, and dedicated time from the security team.
#9about 3 minutes
Why consistency is key to a successful program
Ensure the long-term success of the program by maintaining consistent communication and activities, even if small, to prevent momentum from fading.
#10about 13 minutes
Program recap and answers to common challenges
The talk concludes with a summary of the champion-building recipe and a Q&A session addressing practical challenges like uncooperative teams and alternative champion models.
Related jobs
Jobs that call for the skills explored in this talk.
Featured Partners
Related Videos
Building Security Champions
Tanya Janca
Secure Code Superstars: Empowering Developers and Surpassing Security Challenges Together
Stefania Chaplin
Security Pitfalls for Software Engineers
Jasmin Azemović
Climate vs. Weather: How Do We Sustainably Make Software More Secure?
Panel Discussion
Don't Be A Naive Developer: How To Avoid Basic Cybersecurity Mistakes
Tino Sokic
Software Security 101: Secure Coding Basics
Thomas Konrad
Simple Steps to Kill DevSec without Giving Up on Security
Isaac Evans
Organizational Change Through The Power Of Why - DevSecOps Enablement
Nazneen Rupawalla
From learning to earning
Jobs that call for the skills explored in this talk.
Security Engineer (AI AppSec)
Ignite Technical Resources
Richmond, United Kingdom
Senior
Azure
DevOps
Continuous Integration




