Close Menu
TechCentralTechCentral

    Subscribe to the newsletter

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    WhatsApp Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    • News

      A history of the decoders made by M-Net and DStv

      30 November 2023

      How South Africa’s banks became bakgat

      30 November 2023

      Putin’s daughter pursues digital plan in push to embrace Africa

      30 November 2023

      MTN slashes prepaid data prices: 200GB for R399

      30 November 2023

      Spar confident worst of ERP disaster now behind it

      30 November 2023
    • World

      ‘Go f… yourself’: Musk lashes out at fleeing advertisers

      30 November 2023

      Microsoft to take non-voting position on OpenAI board

      30 November 2023

      Hackers stole customer support data in Okta breach

      29 November 2023

      Orange withdraws from process to buy into Ethio Telecom

      28 November 2023

      Musk’s X hit by advertiser exodus

      27 November 2023
    • In-depth

      Africa has a feature phone problem

      23 November 2023

      Is your ISP monitoring your online activity?

      10 November 2023

      The real Big Brother Africa

      2 November 2023

      Compared: Starlink prices around the world – including Africa

      30 October 2023

      Africa is booming

      30 October 2023
    • TCS

      TCS+ | OneTrust’s Joseph Byrne: privacy risk management done right

      29 November 2023

      TCS+ | Ricoh – safe and secure role in today’s digital ecosystems

      27 November 2023

      TCS+ | NEC XON on going toe to toe with cybercriminals

      22 November 2023

      TCS | How ShotSpotter is fighting gun crime in Cape Town

      13 November 2023

      TCS+ | SOC-as-a-service: CYBER1 SOC and the future of cybersecurity

      13 November 2023
    • Opinion

      Could Cape Town become Africa’s Silicon Valley?

      14 November 2023

      Chris Kruger: What I learnt in my decades in IT leadership

      6 November 2023

      Ransomware attacks: how South African companies should respond

      6 November 2023

      Fibre providers urged to go ‘nano’ to cut costs

      31 October 2023

      Big banks, take note: PayShap should be free

      20 October 2023
    • Company Hubs
      • 4IRI
      • Africa Data Centres
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Altron Systems Integration
      • Arctic Wolf
      • AvertITD
      • CallMiner
      • CoCre8
      • CYBER1 Solutions
      • Digicloud Africa
      • Digimune
      • E4
      • Entelect
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • iKhokha
      • Incredible Business
      • iONLINE
      • LSD Open
      • Maxtec
      • MiRO
      • NEC XON
      • Next DLP
      • Paratus
      • Ricoh
      • Skybox Security
      • SkyWire
      • Velocity Group
      • Videri Digital
    • Sections
      • AI and machine learning
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud computing
      • Consumer electronics
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • E-commerce
      • Education and skills
      • Energy
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Metaverse and gaming
      • Motoring and transport
      • Open-source software
      • Public sector
      • Science
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Events
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home » Sections » Information security » NEC XON appoints Armand Kruger as head of cybersecurity

    NEC XON appoints Armand Kruger as head of cybersecurity

    Promoted | NEC XON has announced the appointment of Armand Kruger as head of cybersecurity.
    By NEC XON10 May 2023
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email
    NEC XON’s Armand Kruger

    NEC XON, a leading African ICT solutions provider, has announced the appointment of Armand Kruger as head of cybersecurity. Kruger will oversee all cybersecurity offerings including cybersecurity strategy, programmes and executive advisory.

    Jason Barr, NEC XON executive of safety solutions, says Kruger brings deep cybersecurity nous to the new role, having served as head of cyber operations at NEC XON.

    “His core focus has been on tactical incident response and threat hunting, and we are delighted to promote Armand into this key position given the excellent reputation he has built with us over the years,” says Barr. Before joining NEC XON, Kruger worked at Vodacom as a threat hunter, focusing on cyber-threat simulations and attack scenarios.

    Discover more at www.nec.xon.co.za

    Kruger has been in countless major cybersecurity incidents, including digital hands-on-keyword battles with ransomware operations. He believes that incident response can be complex, and business coordination is key, but the unspoken rule leaders tend to forget in stressful situations is to remain composed and systematically find the source of the threat.

    “The contemporary demand for connecting numerous individuals in far-flung locations through interconnected systems, data sources and storage presents a complex and extremely demanding cybersecurity landscape. This landscape comes with various competing requirements like accessibility and availability versus privacy and protection. Hackers frequently take advantage of the vulnerabilities that arise due to the intricacies of managing and maintaining these diverse environments,” says Kruger.

    He harnesses a “hacker mindset” to help customers become cyber-resilient. “The biggest security risks facing companies today are embedded in the rise of the cyber economy with digital cartels driving cyber risk. It’s important to be proactive to maintain threat resistance. Constant cybersecurity housekeeping is vital to stay up to date and eliminate most threats, while intensive research into emerging threat tradecraft keeps the more serious threat actors at bay,” he says.

    Methodology and security culture

    Kruger believes that cybersecurity strategy stands on three legs: strategic, operational and tactical. He sees architecture, culture, operations, mission and direction as vital components of a successful cybersecurity programme and measures the effectiveness of these components by comparing them to industry standards and validating them through tactical simulations.

    Kruger believes that a cybersecurity culture journey is vital to balance the need for strong security measures with the need for employees to access the systems and data they need to do their jobs. He says that employees need to know why these measures are in place and align how they think, consume data and behave with that understanding. Given the move towards ecosystem business, that culture must extend beyond the company walls.

    That third-party risks are a major concern for cyber leaders, and Kruger emphasises that partners and third-party vendors need to understand the strategy that the business is following and the reason for the enforced security measures. Either they comply, or they don’t do business.

    AI and machine learning in cybersecurity

    Kruger sees artificial intelligence and machine learning playing a major role in the future of cybersecurity, especially around automated security operations. He says cybersecurity skills will always be essential, but AI has the potential to augment cyber capabilities if used correctly.

    To stay informed about changes to regulations and standards related to cybersecurity, Kruger personally invests in research and industry communication. He evaluates the strategic direction of change, compares it to clients’ business goals, and embeds them into the cybersecurity strategies he implements.

    NEC XON helps customers mature their cybersecurity posture to achieve strategic outcomes by focusing on key drivers such as moving to multi-cloud environments, network architecture and topology revisions, IoT and 5G adoption, deeper changes to create competitive advantage, secure more market share, and increase revenues. It helps organisations mature progressively, from point security through aggregation and correlation of multiple points to orchestration and automation of interaction between points.

    About NEC XON
    NEC XON is a leading African integrator of ICT solutions and part of NEC, a Japanese company. NEC XON has operated in Africa since 1963 and delivers communications, energy, safety, security and digital solutions. It co-creates social value through innovation to help overcome serious societal challenges. The organisation operates in 54 African countries and has a footprint in 16 of them. Regional headquarters are located in South, East and West Africa. NEC XON is a level 1-certified broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) business. Discover more at www.nec.xon.co.za.

    • Read more articles by NEC XON on TechCentral
    • This promoted content was paid for by the party concerned
    Armand Kruger Jason Barr NEC XON
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email
    Previous ArticleYour next Uber could be … an aeroplane
    Next Article Focus on employee experience makes a contact centre a value centre

    Related Posts

    A history of the decoders made by M-Net and DStv

    30 November 2023

    ‘Go f… yourself’: Musk lashes out at fleeing advertisers

    30 November 2023

    How South Africa’s banks became bakgat

    30 November 2023
    Add A Comment

    Comments are closed.

    Promoted

    5G home broadband a big opportunity for African operators

    30 November 2023

    DCA, Huawei and WBBA host Africa Fibre Forum 2023

    30 November 2023

    Accelerate innovation with platform engineering

    30 November 2023
    Opinion

    Could Cape Town become Africa’s Silicon Valley?

    14 November 2023

    Chris Kruger: What I learnt in my decades in IT leadership

    6 November 2023

    Ransomware attacks: how South African companies should respond

    6 November 2023

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2023 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.