It’s almost the end of October, which means another national cybersecurity awareness month (NCSAM) is about to end. What? You didn’t know it was national cybersecurity awareness month? You’re not alone and that’s the problem I have with this annual October “celebration.”

Now I wasn’t always this much of a Debbie Downer about NCSAM. In 2008, I attended the NCSAM kickoff event at the Ronald Reagan Center in Washington DC. The event was sponsored by the National Cybersecurity Alliance and featured prominent speakers including Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn, and the White House National Security Staff’s Acting Senior Director for Cybersecurity, Chris Painter.