Action Alert | RSA InfoSec Conference Takes a Small Step Forward

We’re checking up on our old pals at RSA Conference, billed as a premier information security event, and are cautiously optimistic. We’re optimistic because the number of women delivering keynote addresses has grown significantly since last year.

An Enigma machine developed in the early- to mid-20th century to protect sensitive communication. Photo credit: Michael Himbeault [CC BY 2.0], via Flickr.

In 2018, only 24% of their keynote addresses were delivered by women, but that number has almost doubled for their March 2019 conference. This year, 41% of their keynote speakers are women, and 18% of them are women of color, but we’re cautious to give them too much praise, because their overall speaker lineup still doesn’t include enough women. Out of almost 750 total speakers — yes, we counted them all — only 32% of them are women.

Now that you know it’s possible to make positive change, RSA organizers, we challenge you to make the entire 2020 speaker list even more gender equal.

Kudos to @rsaconference for raising the number of women delivering keynotes from 24% in 2018 to 41% in 2019, but the overall number of women speaking at #RSAC 2019 is still too low at 32%. Improve the ratio. #GenderAvenger https://www.genderavenger.com/blog/action-alert-rsa-conference-small-step-forward