Cybersecurity Leadership - The 15% Advantage

Uploaded on 2025-08-04 in TECHNOLOGY--Resilience, NEWS-Cybersecurity News, FREE TO VIEW

A new report from HackerOne titled 'The 15% Advantage: How High‑Performing CISOs Leverage Crowdsourced Security' reveals that although nearly 94 per cent of CISOs are familiar with crowdsourced security, only about 15 per cent make entire use of its full potential.

This is based on a global survey of 400 Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) in large organisations in sectors including finance, technology, manufacturing, retail, and healthcare across 13 industries.

According to the report, CISOs who deploying the three core elements of crowdsourced security report significantly better outcomes. These are:

Bug bounty programmes.
Vulnerability disclosure policies (VDPs).
Third‑party penetration testing.

Crowdsourced Security: A Winning Formula

While 73 per cent of CISOs using any form of crowdsourced approach find it effective at uncovering and resolving vulnerabilities, that success rate jumps to 89 per cent amongst those employing bug bounties, VDPs, and pentesting in concert.

CISOs At The Forefront of AI & Privacy Governance

The research emphasises the changing responsibilities of the CISO role. An overwhelming 84 per cent of CISOs now shoulder AI safety accountability, while 82 per cent oversee data privacy arrangements - a marked shift from traditional technical duties to broader strategic and governance responsibilities.

BarriersTo Adoption

The report also identifies the hurdles holding back broader adoption of comprehensive crowdsourced security programmes. Some CISOs still view these initiatives as experimental or siloed phases. The challenge lies in turning point solutions into integrated, proactive security strategies that deliver measurable business value

Business Impact Of Full-Spectrum Adoption

Leading CISOs - those within the top 15 per cent - stand out not just in technical performance, but in how they integrate security with business objectives. They view crowdsourced security as a strategic asset, particularly in the era of AI‑driven threat expansion, where traditional defences may struggle to keep pace.

Integration Over Experimentation

HackerOne CEO Kara Sprague highlights that while crowdsourced security is widely known, emerging enterprise demands - particularly those posed by AI - require maturity in deployment. “As AI expands the enterprise attack surface and raises the stakes for rapid response, human ingenuity and outside perspective are more essential than ever,” she stated.

Strategic Lessons For CISOs

The report outlines several strategic imperatives:

Adopt all three pillars: Integrating bug bounty, VDPs, and pentesting delivers notably higher efficacy.

Align with business outcomes: Successful CISOs position these initiatives within strategic risk frameworks, not just operational controls.

Address emerging threats proactively: With AI reshaping threat dynamics, traditional reliance on internal testing is insufficient without complementary outside perspectives ([HackerOne][1]).

Why The 15 Percent Succeed

The high-performing CISOs distinguish themselves by:

Establishing holistic programmes that cover diverse digital assets and threat vectors.

Prioritising rapid detection and resolution of vulnerabilities before they escalate.

Leveraging the diverse skills and creativity of external security researchers to complement in-house capabilities.

These leaders typically elevate crowdsourced security from pilot projects to core components of their security operations.

Implications For Business Leaders

As offensive security gains prominence at the board level, CIOs and CISOs who can demonstrate real return on security investment via measurable metrics around crowd‑sourced initiatives are better positioned to secure budget and executive buy‑in.

HackerOne's report reinforces the proposition that proactive, data‑driven approaches provide both risk reduction and business assurance. CISOs aiming to move from awareness to action should heed the report’s message: crowdsourced security is no longer optional experimentation - it is a strategic imperative.

HackerOne | HackerOne | Ditch Carbon

Image: Ideogram

You Might Also Read:

How CISOs Can Speak The Language Of Risk & Resilience:

If you like this website and use the comprehensive 8,000+ service supplier Directory, you can get unrestricted access, including the exclusive in-depth Directors Report series, by signing up for a Premium Subscription.