CSO30 ASEAN & Hong Kong Awards Opens Nominations for 2026 Cycle
Now in its sixth edition, the regional awards programme accepts submissions across three pathways through July 31.
Nominations are open for the 2026 CSO30 ASEAN & Hong Kong Awards, the annual programme recognising cybersecurity leaders and teams across Southeast Asia and Hong Kong. The deadline is July 31, 2026.
This is the sixth consecutive edition. The programme positions itself as a regional maturity benchmark, with past winners drawn from some of the region's larger enterprises and institutions.
Three nomination pathways are available. CSO Leadership targets individual contributors whose decisions measurably changed how their organisation is protected and who shaped executive-level security posture. CSO Transformation asks nominees to document a specific project completed within the past twelve months — one that produced quantifiable outcomes and contributed something to the broader security community. Ecosystem covers team submissions where the work extended beyond a single organisation, affecting partners or the wider national cybersecurity context.
The distinction between categories matters. Leadership submissions centre on decision-making influence and long-term resilience planning. Transformation submissions require evidence of a completed project: what was attempted, what obstacles appeared, and what the numbers show afterward. Ecosystem submissions carry an additional bar — demonstrable impact outside the nominating organisation's own perimeter.
Self-nominations are explicitly encouraged. So are peer nominations from CISOs and CSOs nominating colleagues.
Organisers note that project details submitted through the process will not be published, a deliberate accommodation given the sensitivity of operational security work. That confidentiality assurance is worth noting for nominees who might otherwise hesitate to describe real programme details.
The awards gala is organised through Foundry, the events arm behind the CIO and CSO ASEAN editorial brands. Information and nomination forms are available at the official event page.
For Threat Vectr readers: the programme is not a regulatory or policy instrument, and carries no compliance weight. Its value, if any, is reputational and network-based — a venue where CISOs and CSOs gain visibility with peers and boards. Whether that visibility translates into something material depends on the organisation and the leader.
