Denise Carter-Bennett, an up-and-coming female leader in New Zealand’s cyber security industry, has been confirmed as the next Co-Chair of the New Zealand Network for Women in Security (NZNWS).

An active member of the network since 2022, Carter-Bennett will take over from outgoing Co-Chair Sai Honig.

Honig, who co-founded NZNWS with Tash Bettridge in 2019, will continue to serve the organisation as an honorary committee member.

“I am confident that the organisation will continue to thrive under the leadership of Denise Carter-Bennett and the rest of the board”, says Honig.

“It has been an honour to serve as Co-Chair of NZNWS since its inception. I am incredibly proud of the work we have done to support and promote women in the security industry.

“A big driver of our work is to encourage women to lead and excel in their careers, and to see Denise develop her leadership skills and rise into this new role encapsulates that.”

Carter-Bennett, the current Treasurer of NZNWS, was instrumental in setting up NZNWS as a registered charitable trust and helping the organisation with compliance.

“I am excited to step into the role of Co-Chair and continue the important work of NZNWS,” says Carter-Bennett.

“Diverse thinking is an advantage in the tech sector. I became involved with NZNWS because I am passionate about increasing the representation of women in tech.”

“As a neurodiverse Māori wahine working in security, I understand how isolating the work experience can be for minorities. That’s why I am so motivated to build a community that will empower more people like me to thrive in their security careers.”

“I look forward to working with the board and our members to further our mission of supporting women working in security, as well as making our industry more inclusive.”

After honing her skills in ethical hacking, malware analysis and open-source security as a security researcher, Carter-Bennett went on to hold senior roles in cyber security at Datacom, and currently works as a Security Architect at Network 4 Learning. She was recognised for her contributions to the security industry at the Women in Security Awards 2023, where she won the “Cyber Security Champion” award.

As writer and speaker on topics such as neurodiversity, data sovereignty and women in tech, she is particularly passionate about empowering neurodiverse people, Māori and Pasifika, to succeed in the technology sector. She is of Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Hine and Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei descent.

Andrew Thorburn, current Co-Chair, will continue to serve alongside Carter-Bennett in her new role. Wellington based Michelle Crowe, Security Risk and Compliance Team Lead at Xero, will be joining the board. All other board members remain unchanged.

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