Introducing New HSD Premium Partner: SecureMe2

SecureMe2 recently became a premium partner of Security Delta (HSD). SecureMe2 has been active in security since 2016, and offers its clients a Cyberalarm, which monitors ICT infrastructure in real-time for malicious behaviour, shadow-IT, and misconfigurations. To get to know this new partner better we sat down with Aad van Boven, founder and CEO at SecureMe2, and asked him about the biggest challenges within cyber security and his ambitions for the upcoming years.

Could you describe your activities in the field of security?

"Just as you need a fire alarm to prevent fire hazards, we believe you need a Cyberalarm for any cyber incidents", Aad explains. "Our Cyberalarm analyses network traffic of all connected devices and gives an alert immediately when a threat is detected. We prevent about 10 to 15 large ransomware outbreaks for our clients every week that would have a large impact. The most important things we can ensure for our clients is continuity, and the prevention of being held liable when incidents do occur."

"Especially that last part is growing more likely", he continues, "with NIS2 rapidly approaching. Despite NIS2 coming up so soon, we're not necessarily seeing a large uptick in awareness. To be honest, I think what we are seeing is a huge hype just as with GDPR. A lot of attention is being called to it, but when it goes into effect I believe there won't be enough sanctions and people will be hesitant to make a report of any incidents. We believe that 'selling fear' is the wrong approach. Speaking to people's sense of responsibility is much more effective in the long run."

Who is the target audience for the Cyberalarm?

"You could say our product is useful for anyone who has a computer network that is used by individuals for work", Aad laughs, "but that's almost everyone. Our sensors cover 360 degrees in our clients' networks, so in theory we could genuinely help anyone. Since it is hard to approach every target audience at once, we are now concentrating a lot on local government and healthcare. However, since we are a Dutch company with a wealth of Dutch expertise, we are aiming to move on to larger national government agencies, such as ministries and police forces."

What made you decide to become a premium partner of Security Delta (HSD)?

"As a business in cybersecurity, a few things are very important, thinking of credibility. Knowing that, SecureMe2's two guiding principles are reliability and integrity. Being connected to the right parties is essential, and a premium partnership with HSD is really beneficial to achieve that." HSD has a large network that we can also engage with. Our mission is to make The Netherlands more cyber resilient, and that's something no one can do alone. We have a strong belief in the security ecosystem."

"The partnership already brought us a lot. Earlier in June we spoke during an event (The Hague Inspires) through HSD to inform entrepreneurs on the risks and opportunities of business in the digital realm. We also visited the RSA in San Francisco during the trade mission that was organised by InnovationQuarter, RVO and Security Delta (HSD). We want to push the collaboration with HSD to the next level and reap even more benefits from it this year!"

Could you share with us what you see as the biggest challenge in security?

"Behavioural change in people and inaction if it doesn't occur", Aad sums up. "This is mainly due to the fact that security is seen as inconvenient, and that we would only make it harder for people. But all those implemented measures are certainly for a reason! One of the main reasons the NIS2 legislation is being implemented is because organisations are not getting it right themselves without compelling legislation. Besides, it is also often the case that a rebuttal comes quickly. People are quick to say ‘there's nothing to be gained from me’ or ‘I'm not a target’. Everyone is a target! Even if you think you have nothing to hide, you always have something to protect."

What can you tell me about SecureMe2's ambitions for the coming years?

"We are looking forward to growing to a larger size by the end of next year. We will continue to focus primarily on network detection. However, we would like to move more towards the insights aspect of it too. Since we capture network flows, we think that we can extract a lot more information from that data with relatively simple cross-sections. Therefore, I believe that in addition to identifying malicious traffic, we can develop a number of additional services that will enable us to create efficient management to get ahead of all the misery. An alarm is great, but an alarm going off also means something has already happened."

"We also wish to team up a lot more with universities of applied sciences. Especially in the light of all the new AI technologies, we are curious to see if we can make smart new cross-sections to get even more value out of it. In addition, the plan for us is to truly remain a Dutch organisation, with strong European values. All our data is stored in Germany, as their data privacy laws are even stricter than those over here. We were also the third company in the Netherlands to obtain ECSO's Cybersecurity Made in Europe label, which we are very proud of!"