Information Security Officers Group (ISOG) gave recognition to 20 outstanding Filipino cybersecurity experts at the first ISOG I Am Secure Cybersecurity Excellence Awards held on October 27, 2022 at the Shangri-La at the Fort.

ISOG launched the I Am Secure Cybersecurity Excellence Awards to recognize exceptional Filipino cyberleaders who showed exceptional leadership and contributions in their respective roles as Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) or Senior Head of Security; Chief Risk Officer (CRO) or Risk Manager; Chief Information Officer (CIO), Chief Technology Officer (CTO) or Technology Head; and Data Privacy Officer (DPO).

For the CISO/Senior Head of Security category, the awardees are Jose Paolo Rufo, CISO and DPO of UnionBank of the Philippines (Banking and Finance); Jan Martin Encina, Associate Director/Head of Information Security Governance and Ops of MAYA (Fintech). Russell Hernandez, CISO of Insular HealthCare (Insurance); Ross Sherwin De Claro, Senior Manager II of Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Government and Public Sector); Charmaine Rose Valmonte, CISO of Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. (Utilities); and Mario Demarillas, CISO of Exceture Inc. (Management and Services).

For the CRO/Risk Manager category, the winners are Ana Marie Acuña, Operational Risk Management Head of BDO Unibank, Inc. (Banking and Finance); Bayan Magallon, AVP and Senior Manager – Risk Management and Compliance Division of Cocolife (Insurance); and Kamille Ann Salva, Head of Business Analytics Continuity and Actuarial Risk Department of Public Safety Savings and Loan Association, Inc. (Other Financial Institutions).

For the CIO/CTO/Technology Head category, the awardees are Henry Rhoel Aguda, Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Technology and Operations Officer and Chief Transformation Officer of UnionBank of the Philippines (Commercial Bank); Alfred Punzalan, Information Technology (IT) Head of Northpoint Development Bank (Other Local Banks); Lloyd Alferez Sioson, Vice President for IT Department of Philippine Guarantee Corporation (Other Financial Institutions); Ken Sarmiento, OIC-ICT Branch Director of Department of Migrant Workers (Government and Public Sector); Reuben Thomas Nagtalon Jr., Consultant for Digital Transformation & Re-engineering of Chinese General Hospital and Medical Center (Healthcare); and Ricson Singson Que, Cybersecurity Program Coordinator/IS Consultant of De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde.

For the DPO category, the awardees are Jonathan John Paz, DPO & Enterprise IS Officer of Bank of the Philippine Islands (Banking and Finance); Jonathan Pineda, VP, CISO & DPO of Government Service Insurance System (Government and Public Sector); Jan Edward Cruz, Data Privacy & IT Manager of Chroma Hospitality Inc. (Management and Services); Michael Oliver C. Ignacio, Information Security and Data Privacy Vice President of Inspiro Relia, Inc. (Business Process Outsourcing); and Roselle Basa, DPO/Compliance Officer for Data Privacy of University of the East (Academe).

“In our mission to safeguard people and institutions in cyberspace, we find encouragement in the dedication and untiring efforts of our colleagues and partners in the field of cybersecurity. Through this ceremony, ISOG hopes that our awardees’ commitment and competence inspire a culture of excellence among cybersecurity professionals in the Philippines,” ISOG President and Land Bank Chief Information Technology Officer Archie Tolentino said.

All nominees were screened by ISOG core and its alliance and partner representatives from Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), ISACA Manila Chapter, IT Interaction Philippines (ITIP), and ROOTCON.

“The success of this first ISOG Cybersecurity Awards affirms that the Information Security Officers Group is in the right direction towards strengthening information security in the Philippines. Since the organization was founded in 2014, we’ve continuously equipped and empowered as many information security professionals through our awareness and education programs, as well as avenues for community and fellowship,” said ISOG Vice President and I Am Secure Cybersecurity Excellence Awards Chairman.

Organized by XMS, the ISOG I Am Secure Cybersecurity Excellence Awards is one of ISOG’s initiatives to strengthen information security in the Philippines. Titanium event sponsors are Microsoft, Huawei, Trends, Cycognito, DarkTrace, Crowdstrike with ITSDI, Trend Micro with Netsec and VST ECS. Platinum event sponsors are VMWAre; Checkmarx; Palo Alto with Westcon, Extrahop; Fortinet, Trellix with VST ECS, Mandiant with MDI Novare, and VST ECS; and Rubrik with Exclusive Networks. Gold event sponsors are BlueVoyant, Efficient IP, Gigamon, F5 with Westcon; and Silverfort and IPV Network. Exhibitors were G Core Labs; Arcon, Cybereason, Cyfirma with NextGen Group, KnowBe4, Yubico and Sophos with WSI.

Media partners for this event are the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Business World, DIGI-PH.com, Backend News, and the New Hue.

For more details about ISOG, visit ISOG’s official website at www.isog-org.ph and socials at LinkedIn: ISOG (Information Security Officers Group), Facebook: ISOGPH, YouTube Channel: ISOG SUMMIT.