New Security Guidelines and Regulations: Peer Review

In an informal poll, we asked the CSOs of several Fortune 500 companies how broad an impact they thought that emerging guidelines and regulations would have on security in the long term. Here's a sampling of what they said.

July 01, 2003 — CSO — The Panoramic "The various regulations will have a deep and wide-ranging impact on international business for several reasons. New, unbudgeted costs will affect some companies' profitability and, depending on their size, perhaps their survivability. Partially overlapping or completely diverse requirements from different agencies will make compliance more difficult and time-consuming. For example, if you're a pharmaceutical company, you may end up having security regulations from the FDA, DEA and Customs that are in conflict with each other. Then there is the cultural impact. Some foreign managers may view these regulations as an imposition of the U.S. will on their country, and, of course, that won't be received well." (Asia-based global consumer products company)

The Pragmatic "We are already starting to hear rumblings that other federal agencies are drafting proposed requirements, so we certainly expect to see additional regulations for transportation, chemical storage, mailrooms and other potential terrorist targets in business. If there were to be additional terrorist attacks, we would expect to see this process ramp up very quickly. Corporate security departments that have never before had to work with government regulations and regulators will be required to do so." (U.S.-based consumer products company)

The Proud "For those corporations that didn't have their act together, it could have a significant long-term impact. But is it the reversethat the government and those entities issuing these standards are finally trying to get in step with activities and standards that we've held for years? That's more the way we've experienced it. It's us sort of looking backward saying, Come on boys, keep coming." (U.S.-based technology manufacturer)

The Paranoid "I'll pass. I'm currently at a meeting trying to determine how we can manage the plethora of guidelines and standards and regulations being proposed, and I wouldn't want to antagonize the government." (U.S.-based utilities company)