SOFTSWISS Security Chief Named Among Top Global CISOs
The 2026 award recognizes leadership in risk management and regulatory compliance for global digital platforms.
Updated on Oct. 22, 2026 in Cybersecurity
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Cyber Defence Magazine has named SOFTSWISS Chief Security Officer Evgeny Zaretskov as a winner of the 2026 Top Global CISOs Awards. The recipients were announced on October 20, 2026, at the CyberDefenseCon 2026 event.
Why it matters
The recognition highlights the evolving standards for information security leadership in high-scale digital environments. It serves as a benchmark for how executive-level security roles are currently evaluated based on risk management and regulatory adherence.
The Cyber Defense Awards, now in their 14th year, evaluate candidates on their capacity to translate enterprise risk, mitigate data loss, and maintain regulatory compliance. These metrics assess the security leadership required to manage operations for a workforce of 2,200 professionals.
The players
Evgeny Zaretskov
The Chief Security Officer at SOFTSWISS who oversees risk management for a global technology firm.
SOFTSWISS
A technology company founded in 2009 that supports over 1,500 brands and employs more than 2,200 professionals.
Cyber Defence Magazine
A publication founded in 2012 that tracks cybersecurity trends and sponsors the annual Cyber Defense Awards.
The details
The selection process for the Top Global CISOs Awards focuses on an executive's ability to implement comprehensive risk programs within their organization. Candidates are assessed on how they translate technical security vulnerabilities into actionable business risks, prevent data exfiltration, and ensure infrastructure meets international regulatory standards.
Timeline
October 20, 2026: Winners were announced at the CyberDefenseCon 2026 event.
2026: Evgeny Zaretskov recognized in both the Top Global CISOs Awards and the HotTopics Global CISO 100.
The Tech Race
The award follows the recipient's inclusion in the 2026 HotTopics Global CISO 100. This pattern of recognition marks a trajectory of rising visibility for security executives navigating global compliance and massive scale.
This award serves as an industry signal for organizations looking to verify security leadership benchmarks. It highlights the evolving professional standards for those managing security operations for large-scale, multi-brand digital ecosystems.
The takeaway
The security industry continues to favor CISOs who prioritize cross-functional risk management over purely defensive technical stacks. Watch the upcoming industry conferences for new benchmark criteria in the 2027 awards cycle.
Further reading
For broader analysis of security leadership standards, visit Cybersecurity.
Source note: This article includes information reported by E-PLAY Africa.
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