CampusCISO CYBER BRIDGE: A New Way to Connect with Higher Education Peers and to Research Vendors
I founded CampusCISO to help higher education institutions strengthen their cybersecurity strategies. As a former university CISO, I know how useful it can be to have a dynamic community of peers who share their knowledge and insights.
That’s why I’m excited to announce CampusCISO CYBER BRIDGE. This service enables our members to connect with each other when researching vendor solutions.
What is CampusCISO CYBER BRIDGE? And how does it work?
CYBER BRIDGE lets you request help from other members with knowledge of a vendor solution. When other members receive your request, they can either provide an anonymous review or connect with you via email. These additional insights help you make informed decisions about your cybersecurity investments.
This service fosters collaboration among peers who are using the CampusCISO services. It helps you benefit from the collective knowledge of other higher education leaders who have dealt with similar cybersecurity issues. CYBER BRIDGE also helps you share your own insights and experiences with other members who are looking for assistance.
And best of all, your access to CampusCISO CYBER BRIDGE doesn’t depend on how much you spend with us. Instead, it’s powered by your participation in the CampusCISO community. You use points to ask for input about vendors, and you gain points by reviewing vendors and responding to other members’ requests. This lets you contribute to the community and benefit from it at the same time.
How to Send a vendor research request
Here’s how you can send a new vendor research request:
- To send a request, you need to have at least 5 points in your account. You can earn points by submitting vendor reviews or responding to other members’ requests. You earn 1 point for each vendor review you submit and 5 points each time you connect with another member via email.
- First, you need to select a vendor solution that you’re interested in from our vendor directory. You can sort the list by capability, vendor name, or keyword.
- Once you select a vendor solution, you can click on the “Send CYBER BRIDGE request” button and select your target audience.
- You can send a request to all members who have that solution in their inventory for just 5 points.
- For 10 points, you can contact all members who have any solution from that vendor.
- And if you want to reach the widest audience, you can send a broadcast message that goes to all CampusCISO members for 25 points.
How to respond to a CYBER BRIDGE request
Members in your selected audience will receive an email notification with your request details and a link to respond. They can also see your request on their dashboard under the “CYBER BRIDGE” menu.
Recipients can choose to respond to your request by submitting an anonymous review of the vendor solution you’re interested in. This will earn them 1 point they can use on the CampusCISO portal.
Recipients may also choose to connect with you via email. If they do this, they will earn 5 points. CampusCISO will send you both an introduction email if they select this option. Then you can discuss the vendor in a private email thread rather than relying on public forums and reviews.
What are the benefits of CampusCISO CYBER BRIDGE?
CampusCISO CYBER BRIDGE offers many benefits for institutions that are researching vendors. By using this service, you can:
- Research vendors more efficiently by leveraging the experiences of other members.
- Gather input from experienced members to make informed cybersecurity investments.
- Discover new solutions by seeing what other institutions are using.
- Learn from other members’ successes and failures and avoid repeating the same mistakes or pitfalls.
- Build relationships and trust with other members who share your interests and challenges.
- Contribute to the community and earn points by sharing your insights and experiences.
How does CampusCISO CYBER BRIDGE complement other CampusCISO services?
Our mission is to provide services that help higher education institutions evaluate their cybersecurity maturity, identify capability gaps, prioritize new investments, and develop a roadmap for achieving their goals. With CYBER BRIDGE, we aim to enhance the value of our vendor research service.
- We crowd-sourced our solutions directory from our members. We do not add a vendor unless a member requests them, and this repository has grown to almost 1,000 vendor solutions since launching in 2021.
- In May, we launched vendor reviews to help members research solutions used at other colleges and universities. What sets these reviews apart is that they are from other higher education members, not from vendors or marketing firms.
CYBER BRIDGE expands the reach of this vendor directory by encouraging broader participation in online reviews and by providing a mechanism for direct feedback and collaboration among members.
How to Try CampusCISO CYBER BRIDGE Today
CYBER BRIDGE is just one service we offer to help universities assess and improve their cybersecurity. If you are not a CampusCISO member yet, we invite you to join the community today. Start improving your cybersecurity strategy with the help of our online tools, CISO coaching services, and peer networking.
To try CampusCISO CYBER BRIDGE, you need to sign up for free CampusCISO Community membership. Then you’ll need to accumulate at least 5 points before you can send a request, so be sure to complete some vendor reviews or respond to requests from other members!
I hope you will find CYBER BRIDGE useful and valuable for your cybersecurity planning needs. If you have questions or feedback, please contact us. I’d love to hear from you!