SAQ has new managing director

The Swiss Quality Day (tsq) is an important forum for managers, in general for "people on their professional journey", as it says on the tsq page. Every spring, the tsq opens up new perspectives in the context of quality. However, Swiss quality can also be so "attractive" that it is abused and damaged, which is why digital interventions and cybercrimes are also gaining ground in Switzerland.

Therefore, at this year's event, not only did experts provide insights into the grey areas of data theft, system crippling through cyber attacks, and industrial espionage in general, but also into the dubious daily routine of darknet and cyber combat. At the general meeting following the tsq, a promising association course for 2020 was agreed upon.

"Crime Scene Economy" - Crime as a Service

This year's Swiss Quality Day on the topic of "Crime Scene Economy" revolved for once around threats, but also how QM managers deal with them, what they learn from them - what they can do to prevent their company from becoming a crime scene. More than 380 participants were given an insight into the busy underworld, where hackers, tugs and gangsters can be hired to do all sorts of things for a paltry sum.

In times of "cyber-crime-as-a-service", it is not only individuals who are overwhelmed. In his introduction to the DarkNet, Patrick Brielmayer, IT security consultant, ex-hacker commented somewhat ironically on the code of honour of the underworld: "Basically, providers of illegal services work just like other commercial enterprises. They even list general terms and conditions. However, the payment modalities for goods like stolen credit cards are a bit more dubious."

"The attack surface of our devices is proportioning," Swiss cyber pioneer Nicolas Mayencourt also pointed out. The founder of Dreamlab Technologies AG and expert in security and open methodologies considers the many standardized and mostly open interfaces that are operated in offices and public spaces as easy prey for cybercriminals.

"When not only companies and people are linked through the internet, but also all things are networked, and not even protected through local councils, our society becomes more fragile. A small hack on a district heating system, for example, could show direct effects in the real world."

Mayencourt commented on the current local IT security in Switzerland. According to the expert, certain organisations and intelligence services would digitally infiltrate or sabotage almost anything, exploit it for blackmail or industrial espionage. A colleague from the Federal Intelligence Service (FIS) also pointed to greater dangers: He drew attention to methods of spying on people.

His advice to managers is to foster loyalty among employees, for example by making sure that "employees are allowed to get involved and point out inconsistencies."

The cyberspace knows no islands of thought

In Switzerland, crime figures are falling, but cybercrime has almost tripled in five years, and the amount of damage is huge (see also the current DDPS report on cybercrime).Report on the threat situation in Switzerland).

At the tsq, the eager audience not only received facts about the threat situation, they also received tips and assistance from Marc Henauer from the Swiss Federal Reporting and Analysis Centre for Information Assurance MELANI and Markus Mächler , cyber investigators from the Zurich Cantonal Police. It is said that effective IT security is only a task for CFOs or CEOs, but areas such as data protection must be understood and complied with by all company members.

Money and knowledge alone are not enough. In an increasingly complex world, quality always goes hand in hand with risk management. "Without a seatbelt, they and their passengers would rather not drive a car, even if they could drive without a seatbelt," said Marc Henauer. Matthias Kiener, Head of Forensics at KPMG, used examples to show that even today, many frauds still take place by non-digital means.

The tsq program was highly informative and entertaining, both in the morning and in the afternoon. In the course of the event, one also learned that social exchange is more important for the success of a company than losing oneself in abstract islands of thought. Personal defensive attitudes towards innovative technologies serve quality assurance just as little.

Stability, trust and security are and remain important success factors in Swiss quality work.

SAQ Staff handover

At the subsequent General Meeting, President Ruedi Lustenberger was re-elected for a further three-year term of office. Felix Dettwiler and Raphaël Granges, Peter Pedross, as well as Dr. Lothar Natau are also available for a further term of three years. After a term of office of more than 14 years, Peter Bieri had to be bidden farewell. In his place, Marlyse Roulin will take up her position at the SAQ office on 1 June 2019. The doctor of physics comes from French-speaking Switzerland, but has been working in German-speaking Switzerland for 20 years. She was most recently the owner and CEO of Business Agility GmbH, a company that offers consulting and training.

The next Swiss Quality Day 2020 is scheduled to take place on 13 May in the Kursaal Bern.

www.tsq.swiss

www.tsq.swiss