Bridging the Gap: Security and Non-Security Teams Working Together

Many organizations struggle with a disconnect between security teams and others like Infra, IT, DevOps, and R&D. These teams often have conflicting priorities: security wants to lock things down, while others prioritize smooth operations and uptime. But here’s the good news: this rivalry can be transformed into a powerful collaboration.

Understanding the “Why” of the Disconnect:

The root of the issue lies in priorities. Non-security teams value stability and uptime, viewing security as an afterthought that shouldn’t hinder these goals. Security teams, on the other hand, prioritize minimizing attack surfaces and risks, even if it means taking systems offline for patching.

10 Tips for Security and Non-Security Teamwork:

1. Speak the Same Language: Security needs to explain risks and their business impact, not just bark orders. Collaborate with relevant teams, demonstrate security solutions, and ensure everyone understands the goals.
2. Formalize Collaboration: Establish processes that encourage teamwork. This includes joint committees, shared performance metrics (KPIs), and defined workloads to avoid overwhelming either team.
3. Find Common Ground: Don’t force drastic changes. Work together to improve secu
4. rity with minimal disruption to existing workflows. Weigh the impact of changes against the effort involved, and plan implementation with clear milestones, resource requirements, and business goal tracking.
5. Empower Non-Security Teams: Many attacks exploit outdated software. Non-security teams can help by educating users on updates and managing these centrally when possible.
6. Integrate Security, Not Isolate It: A strong security-non-security alliance is key. Security shouldn’t be a separate function. CTOs should educate other departments on security practices and integrate security measures into core IT processes.
7. Foster Collaboration, Not Competition: Eliminate competition between teams. When everyone sees security as a shared responsibility, they’ll work together to solve problems proactively.
8. Open Communication is Key: Regular discussions between security and non-security teams are essential. This allows them to identify vulnerabilities and gain buy-in for solutions. For example, collaborate on incident response plans by understanding how non-security teams operate during cyberattacks.
9. Security, Learn the Network: It’s crucial for security teams to understand the network from non-security teams’ perspective. Learn about critical infrastructure and assets. You may even discover unknown vulnerabilities simply because communication wasn’t clear before.
10. Faster Incident Response: When security and non-security teams work together, they can respond to cyberattacks more effectively, minimizing business disruption.
11. Celebrate Success and Recognition: Be positive! Acknowledge each team’s accomplishments and ensure management recognizes their contributions.

Security and non-security teams can absolutely work together effectively. By aligning goals, fostering communication, and focusing on shared objectives, these teams can transform from rivals into a powerful force that safeguards the organization’s systems and data.

Gavin Romario

Solutions Engineer – Cyber Security