We are an unincorporated not-for-profit organization dedicated to promote and support the profession of information security. We operate purely on a volunteer basis. We do not charge membership or event fees, and operate without financial sponsorship as much as we can.
Vision – why are we here
To promote and support the profession of information security, and be recognized as the premier volunteer security organization for promoting the profession of information security in Vancouver and the province.
Mission – what we do
To hold events that support and promote information security professionals. To serve information security professionals by facilitating the exchange of security information and knowledge consistent with the (ISC)² values and principles through the process of continuous improvement in the following disciplines: Administration Security, Personnel Security, Physical Security, Network Security, Application Software Security, Data Security, Operations Security, Business Continuity Planning, Mandatory Compliance and Investigations.
(That’s the formal list. We’ve also covered security architecture, security awareness, information security theory, process security, practical cryptography, malware management, and quality assurance.)
Background – how we came about
The Vancouver Security Special Interest Group (VanSecSIG, SecSIG or just SIG) was founded in 1983 originally as the CIPS Vancouver Security Special Interest Group. The name was chosen because the group had a number of members from the Vancouver Chapter of the Canadian Information Processing Society (CIPS) when it was founded. However, CIPS has never formally recognized any association between the SecSIG and itself, and the SecSIG has always operated independently from CIPS.
Nevertheless, many in the information security community still referred to the group as the CIPS SIG. It was only in 2013 that that CIPS was officially dropped from the organization’s name. The name “Vancouver Security Special Interest Group” was formally adopted, recognizing its status as a standalone organization as well as reflecting the historical roots of the group.
Around the same time, the organization behind the CISSP certification, (ISC)², started a chapter program. Some of the SecSIG executives were concerned that adding another chapter organization into the Vancouver information security community would only fragment it further. There were already six other organizations at that time in Vancouver trying to find speakers and attract an audience in the local information security industry. So the executive of the SecSIG decided to apply to (ISC)² to establish the (ISC)² Vancouver Chapter.
The (ISC)² Vancouver Chapter was founded in May 2013, and the SecSIG and the (ISC)² Vancouver Chapter now work together and hold joint meetings. They also have a shared executive.
The SecSIG and the (ISC)² Vancouver Chapter now “co-meet” along with the ISSA Vancouver Chapter. Meetings are held monthly except for the summer months.
(ISC)² Vancouver Chapter Constitution and Bylaws
The (ISC)² Vancouver Chapter has a constitution and bylaws approved by (ISC)². This constitution and bylaws is available for download.