NIGEL PHAIR
THE EVOLUTION OF CREST By Nigel Phair, Chair, Australasian Council, at CREST International
CREST—an international not-for-profit, membership
incident response, threat intelligence and security
body representing the global cybersecurity industry—
operations centres.
has been active in Australia for over 10 years and continues to advance to meet the demands of both
ACCREDITATION OF INDIVIDUALS
buyers and suppliers of cybersecurity services.
Individuals involved in the scoping, delivery and signoff of a CREST International accredited service
CREST International started life in 2006 in the UK
can now register with CREST. There are two parts to
and has come a long way. It is now truly international
this process.
with chapters run by democratically elected councils in Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, the European Union and the United Kingdom.
1) An individual provides basic information that allows CREST to identify them as a unique entity. As part of this process the individual will
CREST established a presence in Australia 10 years
be sent the CREST code of conduct to read and
ago as CREST Australia. It was created with funding
electronically sign. The application is reviewed and
and support from the Commonwealth Government
the individual is issued a CREST ID.
to provide assurance to organisations seeking cybersecurity consulting services. It focused initially on penetration testing.
2) An individual provides additional information about skills, training, examinations and experience. CREST is seeking a better understanding of
However the Australian chapter is now CREST
individual competencies as they relate to
Australasia. CREST Australia has become CREST
each accredited CREST member organisation.
Australia New Zealand, and has no connection with
This information will be used to more effectively
CREST International. It has not adopted the CREST
present skilled and competent teams to the buying
accreditation standards and CREST ANZ membership
community, governments and regulators.
does not confer membership of CREST International.
CONNECTING BUYERS WITH SELLERS
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CREST International now has five focus areas:
The CREST International website has a significant
vulnerability assessment, penetration testing,
focus on connecting buyers of cybersecurity services
W O M E N I N S E C U R I T Y M A G A Z I N E
S E P T E M B E R • O C T O B E R 2022
