Security and developers (and a Microsoft Technical Briefing on 4th October in London)

Somehow I feel the mindset needed for security and for software development don’t naturally go together (which would explain why the industry as a whole has such a problem). The reason is – I think – software development is very much a creative process, a bringing together of ideas and design and algorithms, and making them live. It’s a very hard, a very tough process, and one fraught with problem and generally beset with failure (think about the number of projects that fail outright, or at the very least, fall far shot of their goals).

Against this sort of background, the idea of then taking a piece of working code, and then making it fail under certain security related conditions tends to go against the grain, and be an anathema to the creative spirit of the developer. Why is why I think it often gets such a low priority, and is done so badly. There is also the fact that security boarders the worlds of both development and infrastructure, and it is rare to find people with good skills in both areas.

Which is why I am giving a plug for my good friend and colleague Mike Shaw, who will be presenting at a security developer / IT Professional event, on 4th October at the Wembley Conference Centre, in London. I don’t think enough developers do think about security, so it’s great that we are running more security related events, and I think more developer should think about this topic. See Mike’s blog for more info on what he and the other presenters will be covering.

I should also mention there is also a keynote by Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer. If you have never seen him present, then do so, this is a rare opportunity to see him talk – he is good speaker, and the man to speak on future Microsoft directions and priorities.

Click here for more information and to sign up (yes, its free of charge, however the usual caveat applies - places are limited so please register early to avoid disappointment)