Kiwi InfoSec industry celebrate success at iSANZ Awards

PwC, Air New Zealand and RedShield were among those honoured at last night's iSANZ security awards in Wellington as the dramas of this week's earthquakes temporarily went on hold and the focus moved to celebrating New Zealand's world-class InfoSec industry.

Around 200 of New Zealand's information security community gathered in Wellington for the second annual awards, with a last minute venue change due to damage at Te Papa failing to to dampen the enthusiasm for the awards.

The awards are designed to recognise those who have set new standards for making the online space a safer and more secure place.

PwC's Game of Threats simulation game, which provided an interactive simulation of the real-world challenges of a cyber security incident, took out the Best Security Awareness Campaign award, while Air New Zealand won Best Security Project/Initiative for its organisation-wide security transformation programme.

RedShield was named Best Security Company.

In the evening's only individual award, Kate Pearce, senior security consultant at Cisco New Zealand, was named Best International Superstar for her contributions in raising awareness and educating people about cyber security.

The evening also saw NetSafe win the Hall of Fame award for its efforts over the years in helping keep Kiwis safe online, and providing cyber security advice and assistance.

Kendra Ross, iSANZ board chair, says this year's high quality entries represented highly-skilled and dedicated professionals and organisations from across the public and private sectors.

"Information security is a complex and multifaceted area, and much goes on behind the scenes to protect and secure networks from cyber attack," Ross says.

"It's clear that New Zealand has leaders and innovators in InfoSec the equal of anywhere in the world, and we're pleased through the awards to be able to honour their contributions.