Geert Koster
Employee portrait
Geert Koster
‘I strive to ensure that all colleagues handle data securely’
As chief information security officer, Geert Koster is responsible for data security. He keeps colleagues, clients and himself alert by constantly asking the critical question: ‘Why?’.
Simple isn’t secure
‘Security and convenience often clash. To secure your system, you’ll probably have to sacrifice convenience. Passwords are a good example. Passwords that are difficult and complex and also have to be changed regularly aren’t convenient. But simple passwords aren’t always secure, so you have to find a balance.
At Witteveen+Bos, there’s also a link between security and innovation. Before using artificial intelligence to analyse large amounts of data, for example, you need to think critically about who can access the information and how secure that is. If you want to get more out of data by analysing it, then there has to be someone who asks: ‘What will this mean for security?’. I strive to ensure that all Witteveen+Bos colleagues handle information securely.’
NIS2
‘In the EU, the new and stricter Network and Information Security Directive 2 (NIS2) has been introduced to prevent organisations in vital sectors – such as water treatment, energy supply, and finance – from being incapacitated as a result of digital security failures. This is also relevant for us.
Imagine, for example, that we’re working on a water treatment plant. If someone with malicious intent gets their hands on the construction drawings, they can do a lot of damage. So you need to secure them. Operational IT systems which are remotely accessible – such as the control systems for bridges and locks – are also vulnerabilities that need to be properly protected. Because many of our clients have to comply with NIS2, Witteveen+Bos is going to adhere to it as much as possible too.’
Looking at what is possible
‘Recently, we passed an audit for our ISO27001 certification. During it, we demonstrated that, as an organisation, we continue to operate with due regard for information security. We’re also increasing our security awareness by further expanding our network of contacts – i.e. colleagues – in the organisation on the topic of information security.
As Witteveen+Bos’s chief information security officer, I’m responsible for how we handle our data and that of our clients. I work on data security all day long. This is different to almost all my colleagues – for them, information security is a small part of what they do. I’m very aware of this. That’s why I always stress that it’s not my job to decide what isn’t allowed, but rather to look at what conditions can make something possible.’
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