Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Security doesn’t have to be the department of “no.” This talk reimagines AppSec through the developer’s lens where security becomes a product enabler, not an obstacle. We’ll explore how to integrate guardrails instead of gates, and how to align secure coding with product velocity and customer value.
Svitlana Samko
Verizon Connect and CEO of W2Business IT Academy
Senior Technical Project Manager
Svitlana Samko is an experienced technology manager and visionary leader with 18 years of success managing and leading high-performing, innovative teams. She has a demonstrated ability to define and execute strategies that drive a product-centric culture, embed agile delivery practices, and consistently deliver complex initiatives on time and under budget. In recognition of her leadership and industry impact, she is the winner of the Tech Leader 2025 Award.
Svitlana stands out as a trailblazing technology leader, a passionate advocate for women in STEM, and a respected industry voice whose work and community impact continue to reshape the technology landscape.
As Senior Technical Project Manager at Verizon Connect and CEO of W2Business IT Academy, Svitlana has led and delivered mission-critical projects focused on vehicle safety, lifecycle optimization, and regulatory compliance. Her work directly supports Verizon Connect’s commitment to enabling fleets to operate more safely, efficiently, and compliantly, while reducing operational costs and liability through innovative, technology-driven solutions.
Svitlana is also a frequent international conference presenter and thought leader. She has spoken at BSides Security Conference (Dublin), TEDx, Toastmasters, AI Con (Belfast), the SDV Conference (San Francisco), and other industry and professional forums.
Her TEDx Dublin talk, “How to Keep Your Professional Confidence in the Age of the AI Crisis,” provided practical career guidance during a time of rapid technological disruption. The talk empowered professionals to broaden their perspective, strengthen adaptability, and activate underutilized personal and professional capabilities in an AI-driven world.
Marais van Zyl
Verizon Connect
DevOps Enginnering Lead
Experienced engineering specialising in DevOps while integrating security into the everyday being of organisations. I believe that security can't be some actions teams take or deliverables they deliver, but part of their culture of delivering software securely.
I have worked directly or indirectly within the DevOps space for 20 years affecting change and improving how teams use and integrate into the CI/CD world. For the past 5 years, I have also focussed on more tightly integrating security standards and requirements into CI/CD and helping teams thinking earlier of security and not only when something goes wrong.
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Managed by the OWASP® Foundation
owasp.org
Security doesn’t have to be the department of “no.” This talk reimagines AppSec through the developer’s lens where security becomes a product enabler, not an obstacle. We’ll explore how to integrate guardrails instead of gates, and how to align secure coding with product velocity and customer value.
Svitlana Samko
Verizon Connect and CEO of W2Business IT Academy
Senior Technical Project Manager
Svitlana Samko is an experienced technology manager and visionary leader with 18 years of success managing and leading high-performing, innovative teams. She has a demonstrated ability to define and execute strategies that drive a product-centric culture, embed agile delivery practices, and consistently deliver complex initiatives on time and under budget. In recognition of her leadership and industry impact, she is the winner of the Tech Leader 2025 Award.
Svitlana stands out as a trailblazing technology leader, a passionate advocate for women in STEM, and a respected industry voice whose work and community impact continue to reshape the technology landscape.
As Senior Technical Project Manager at Verizon Connect and CEO of W2Business IT Academy, Svitlana has led and delivered mission-critical projects focused on vehicle safety, lifecycle optimization, and regulatory compliance. Her work directly supports Verizon Connect’s commitment to enabling fleets to operate more safely, efficiently, and compliantly, while reducing operational costs and liability through innovative, technology-driven solutions.
Svitlana is also a frequent international conference presenter and thought leader. She has spoken at BSides Security Conference (Dublin), TEDx, Toastmasters, AI Con (Belfast), the SDV Conference (San Francisco), and other industry and professional forums.
Her TEDx Dublin talk, “How to Keep Your Professional Confidence in the Age of the AI Crisis,” provided practical career guidance during a time of rapid technological disruption. The talk empowered professionals to broaden their perspective, strengthen adaptability, and activate underutilized personal and professional capabilities in an AI-driven world.
Marais van Zyl
Verizon Connect
DevOps Enginnering Lead
Experienced engineering specialising in DevOps while integrating security into the everyday being of organisations. I believe that security can't be some actions teams take or deliverables they deliver, but part of their culture of delivering software securely.
I have worked directly or indirectly within the DevOps space for 20 years affecting change and improving how teams use and integrate into the CI/CD world. For the past 5 years, I have also focussed on more tightly integrating security standards and requirements into CI/CD and helping teams thinking earlier of security and not only when something goes wrong.
-
Managed by the OWASP® Foundation
owasp.org
