Jaya Baloo

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Jaya Baloo
EducationTufts University
OccupationChief Information Security Officer at Avast

Jaya Baloo is a cybersecurity expert who is currently the

Avast Software.[1] Baloo was named as one of the top 100 CISO's in 2017, and one of Forbes 100 Women Founders in Europe To Follow in 2018.[2]

Career

Baloo studied at

Verizon for nearly 4 years. Baloo believes that the goal of telecommunication attackers is not to bring down services but to shape and intercept traffic without discovery, notably different than attacks on other critical infrastructure like energy or water.[4]

In 2012 Baloo became the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at KPN Telecom, a Dutch internet service provider, in the same year that KPN was hacked.[5] During this time Baloo was chairman of the Dutch Continuity Board, which is a collaboration tackling denial-of-service (DDos) cyberthreats through exchanging live attack information between competitors. In an interview with the podcast Cyber Security Dispatch, it was highlighted that Baloo's length of tenure at KPN was considerably longer than the 18-month to 2 year average.[6] She was named as one of the top 100 CISO's in 2017, with only 9 other women named.[7] In 2018, Forbes named Baloo as one of 100 Women Founders in Europe To Follow.[8]

In October 2019 Baloo took on her current role as CISO for Avast.[9] One reason why she joined Avast is her love of their mission to ensure "that cybersecurity is a fundamental right. It’s not just for people who can afford to pay for a product – it's for everyone".[10]

Baloo holds a faculty position at the

Singularity University.[11] She is also a quantum ambassador of KPN Telecom and Vice Chair of the Quantum Flagship Strategic Advisory Board of the EU Commission.[12] She considers quantum computers as inevitable tools that will disrupt current computing architectures, recommending that businesses and organisations prepare themselves for the impact of new quantum protocols. Among her recommendations are to increase key length of current algorithms, use quantum key distribution in niche part of the network, and look at post quantum cryptographic algorithms.[4] Baloo projects that the most exciting development in quantum communication will be beyond the current point-to-point into many-to-many, on demand, instantly. This requires quantum repeaters and other architecture in a managed service, which Baloo predicts could be achieved in 5–10 years' time.[13]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Baloo has been providing tips for best home working practices on behalf of Avast.[14][15]

She is a member of the supervisory board of NOS, one of the broadcasting organisations making up the Dutch public broadcasting system.[16]

Interests and views

Baloo is interested in the future of cyber security and how quantum computing may impact privacy. She is an expert in network architecture, security weaknesses in mobile and

quantum communication networks. In 2019, the non-profit Inspiring Fifty selected Baloo as one of the fifty most inspiring women in the Netherlands.[17]

Baloo considers inequality and distribution of assets as one of the biggest global cyberthreats, with only a handful of countries able to detect, respond or defend against threats. On quantum computing, Baloo comments:

"You see that happening at Microsoft, at Google, at IBM, the United States is investing heavily in it [quantum computing], China has billions of dollars in it...But the rest of the world certainly doesn’t. You’re not hearing of a quantum computer or post quantum cryptography being developed in Brazil or in Kenya. What I’m worried about from an

infosec point of view, is that when we have a quantum computer, it’s going to effectively render our current encryption schemes for public key cryptography moot....So if we see an evolution where only certain countries will be able to possess this kind of technology, all of the other countries will be in this ‘digital divide’ that the UN always talks about."[4]

Baloo's advice for women in cybersecurity is to "Hold onto your passion, and don't shut yourself down. We need you in this industry. Help us keep the world safe".[10]

Personal life

Baloo has three children. In her spare time she enjoys diving, having dived at the Great Barrier Reef and in the Bahamas, and would consider becoming a diving instructor as an alternative occupation. Baloo is also training for a pilot license.[10]

References

  1. ^ "Rapid7's new CSO Jaya Baloo on her cybersecurity philosophy". IT Brew.
  2. ^ Kapin, Allyson. "100 Women Founders In Europe To Follow". Forbes.
  3. ^ "Q&A: Jaya Baloo talks quantum computing, cybersecurity in financial institutions". www.bizcommunity.com. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  4. ^ a b c d "Jaya Baloo, CISO at KPN Telecom, on the cyberthreats of the future – Intelligent CISO". Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  5. ^ "From One CISO to Another, Get Back to the Basics - An Interview with Jaya Baloo CISO of KPN". Cyber Security Dispatch. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  6. ^ "From one CISO to another: get back to the basics: an interview with Jaya Baloo".
  7. ^ "The Top 100 CISOs 2017". Hot Topics. 2017-03-09. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  8. ^ Kapin, Allyson. "100 Women Founders In Europe To Follow". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  9. ^ "Avast appoints Jaya Baloo as Chief Information Security Officer". press.avast.com. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  10. ^ a b c "Q&A With New Avast CISO Jaya Baloo | Avast". Security Boulevard. 2019-11-06. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  11. ^ "Jaya Baloo - Faculty". Singularity University. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  12. ^ "SAB". Quantum Technology. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  13. ^ "Quantum Internet - Moving towards quantum resilience". tu-delft.foleon.com. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  14. ^ "CISO Jaya Baloo on business continuity during the coronavirus pandemic".
  15. ^ "Remote workers need to improve security measures amidst covid-19".
  16. ^ "Jaya Baloo Lid Raad van Toezicht".
  17. ^ "Jannie Minnema". Inspiring Fifty: The Netherlands. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
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