Anna Collard, SVP Content Strategy & Evangelist at KnowBe4 Africa, last week won the People’s Choice Award at the prestigious Cybersecurity Woman of the Year awards in Las Vegas.
The Cybersecurity Woman of the Year award ceremony recognises and celebrates exceptional women in the cybersecurity industry for their expertise, leadership, and impact.
This year’s competition saw accomplished nominees from 62 countries judged across nine categories by a panel of international adjudicators.
South Africa’s Collard reached the top three for the People’s Choice Award, with the winner ultimately determined through a popularity vote.
“Winning the award is an incredible honour, especially considering that the other finalists in the category are highly accomplished women: Jen Easterly, the Director of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and Alex Keedy, the Director of Operations at ZeroFox,” said Collard, who lives in Cape Town.
Carmen Marsh, Founder of the Cybersecurity Woman of the Year Awards, noted: “We are thrilled to have such an extraordinary group of finalists from across the globe who have shown immense talent and dedication in their respective domains.”
Collard’s recent accolade adds to her impressive list of awards and accomplishments. In 2022, she was recognised as the IFSEC Global Influencer in Security. In 2020, she received the ISACA South Africa President’s Award. Her achievements also include being featured in the UK’s IT Security Guru’s list of the 21 Most Inspiring Women in Cyber in 2021. Additionally, she was honoured as one of the Top 100 Women in Cyber by Cyber Defence Magazine in both 2020 and 2021 on a global scale. In 2020, she was recognised as one of the Top 50 Women in Cybersecurity in Africa. She also received the Women in Tech Innovations Africa 2020 Award for Southern and Central Africa at Africa Tech Week.
A certified business analyst with multiple security certifications, including CISSP, CISA, CIPP/IT, ex PCI DSS QSA, ISO 27001 Implementer, and auditor, Collard is also a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on the Future of Metaverse for the 2023-2024 term and a board member of the MiDO Cyber Academy Programme, aimed at underserved communities in South Africa to bridge the cyber skills divide.
