SEEBLOCKS.eu Interview - Cybersecurity in the Age of Blockchain with Sudha Iyer (Citi & SEEBLOCKS Strategy Board Member)

Sudha Iyer, Head of Enterprise Data Cybersecurity Architecture at Citi and member of SEEBLOCKS.eu Strategy Board Member, shared her expertise on cybersecurity challenges and solutions in the rapidly evolving blockchain landscape. Iyer's role involves examining various architectures and providing strategic advice to align with industry standards and policies.

"I head the cybersecurity architecture team for Citi [...] my predominant job is looking at the different architectures, legacy, current and the emerging ones, and then identify the specific gaps and then provide systematic advice to business [...] to resolve the issues and align them with standards and policies, not only citywide, but also enterprise wide."

Addressing Gaps in Blockchain Security

Iyer highlighted significant gaps in DLT protocols and the need for infrastructure development:

"There are specific gaps like the DLT protocols [...] There are no demand yet to identify what infrastructures are necessary to support, say, dev P2P, lip P2P, P2PG or GRP protocols. They are non-existent. So you need to create that demand so that the supply, the vendors start building the perimeter security tools."

She emphasised the importance of developing vulnerability scoring systems for digital assets and smart contracts, noting that only two open-source systems currently exist for blockchain vulnerabilities.

Transparency in Blockchain Architecture

Iyer pointed out an ironic aspect of blockchain development:

"Most of the risks, or most of the vulnerabilities were due to misinformation or misrepresentation of the architecture itself as a black box, rather than trying to showcase all the information [...] It is ironic because the protocol itself is open source, but when people develop it, they make it as a black box, which is ironic."

The Role of Standardisation

Iyer stressed the critical role of standardisation in blockchain adoption and regulation:

"Standardisation to me is like a glue for business to succeed, and standards are leaned on [...] to implement your regulatory guidance, anything related to cross border, or how the engagement pattern or model itself happens when the emerging technologies introduced."

She explained that without standards, new technologies and solutions cannot be built effectively, and regulations become difficult to implement and understand.

The Convergence of Data and Technology

Reflecting on her current role and the evolving tech landscape, Iyer noted:

"Data at this age of digital age is pivotal because everything is converging into data, right? Your cloud is becoming configurations, network is becoming configurations. Blockchain is becoming configurations, which eventually is data. So data is pivotal at this age."

Conclusion

Sudha Iyer's insights highlight the complex interplay between cybersecurity, blockchain technology, and standardisation. As blockchain and other emerging technologies continue to evolve, the development of robust security measures and industry standards will be crucial. Iyer's work at Citi exemplifies the ongoing efforts to bridge the gap between innovative technologies and the necessary security frameworks to support their widespread adoption.

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