bio

As FireEye Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, Vasu oversees the company’s global marketing organization. Vasu joined FireEye in September 2017, bringing 18 years of technology industry experience, including senior management roles at Brocade, LSI and Intel. At Brocade, she was vice president of corporate marketing, and previously served as chief of staff to LSI's CEO and head of strategic initiatives and marketing. 

Vasu is passionate about marketing. She was recognized by Forbes as "CMO Next" one of 50 Marketing Chiefs for redefining the role and shaping the future of marketing. Recognized as Top 25 women in Cyber Security by the Software Review & as 10 Best CMOs of 2019 by Silicon Review. 

As an engineer-turned-marketer, she is committed to enabling possibilities, driving purpose-drive change, empowering women in technology, and building a kinder world. 

Why did you get into cybersecurity?

When I was about nine, I watched Star Trek for the first time, and it rocked my world! I fell in love with sci-fi, and I became fascinated by the power of technology. Star Trek showed us how technology could change the universe and “do good.” I knew then that I wanted to fly on the USS Enterprise -- I didn’t realize I was born a few 100 years before my time! Star Trek and the power it had to change the world is what drew me to technology. And nowhere is technology’s ability to “do good” more obvious than in cybersecurity.

What cybersecurity issue is monopolizing most of your time or are you most concerned about?

I think the public knows that there are social media campaigns, from both malicious actors and benign ones, with the aim of altering perceptions around political or religious issues. It took several years, but eventually many people became aware of FireEye research on these threats. But we also see examples of criminals trying to alter legitimate data, and I don’t think people really have thought about that yet. It’s one thing to see a fake news story and be aware of the risks, but it’s another to worry about data manipulation changes that impact your real bank statement or health records, for instance. Cyber threats to the integrity of trusted, legitimate data are going to be a real challenge in the years ahead.

Vasu's Cybersecurity Tip

While companies like FireEye are working to protect us, cybersecurity technology alone is not enough – we all need to be personally responsible. As the virtual and physical worlds blend and the connection between technology and biology deepens, the consequences of cyber attacks become even more sinister. Anything that can be connected to the internet can potentially be hacked, including the tiniest of wearable devices. We need to be aware of these threats and be proactive in protecting ourselves, our families and the companies we work for. We need to work with our security experts and take cyber defense seriously. We need people and technology working seamlessly together to detect, prevent, and respond to cyber attacks.