In today’s rapidly evolving threat landscape, runtime security has become a critical frontier in cloud-native defense. To help accelerate innovation in this space, Upwind has appointed veteran cybersecurity leader Rinki Sethi as its new Chief Security Officer. With a proven track record at organizations like Twitter, IBM, and Rubrik, Rinki brings deep expertise in building scalable, resilient security programs for some of the world’s most complex digital environments.
In this conversation with CloudTweaks, Rinki discusses her decision to join Upwind, the company’s bold vision for transforming runtime security, and the challenges and opportunities she sees shaping the future of cybersecurity. From empowering DevSecOps teams with real-time visibility to redefining threat response at the infrastructure layer, her insights reflect both strategic foresight and a pragmatic approach to securing modern cloud environments.
You’ve held senior security roles at major organizations like Twitter, Palo Alto Networks, and Walmart. What are some key lessons from those experiences that you’re bringing into your role as CSO at Upwind?
Having led security at some of the largest organizations in the world, I understand the real, day-to-day challenges security teams face, from managing cloud environments to responding to rapidly evolving threats with limited resources. A key lesson I’ve learned is that security tools must be both powerful and easy to employ. If they don’t integrate smoothly into workflows, they won’t get used.
After two decades as a customer of some of the most innovative cybersecurity companies, I know what great products look like – and what gaps still exist. At Upwind, I’m excited to bring that perspective into the product development process. I’m thrilled to join a team that’s committed to building a world-class product that dominates the market.
Having worked on both the practitioner and board levels, how does this dual perspective influence your approach to cybersecurity leadership?
Having been a practitioner (reporting to the board) and being on both private and public boards, I’ve developed a well-rounded perspective on cybersecurity leadership. Being a part of board-level discussions gave me a broader business lens, helping me become a more effective security leader by learning how to frame security risks in terms that matter to the business.
On the flipside, bringing cybersecurity expertise to the boardroom has helped me guide board members in understanding how to think about security – what questions to ask, what good security looks like, and how to prioritize risk. That experience has influenced how I lead my teams, particularly when it comes to communicating with executives and boards. I focus on making sure we’re not just technically accurate, but also clear, concise, and aligned with business priorities.
What challenges have you faced in building and scaling security programs at large enterprises, and how do you see these challenges evolving in today’s cloud-first environment?
Scaling security has always meant fighting fragmentation of teams, tools, and priorities. In large enterprises, that fragmentation is already significant, but in a cloud-first environment, it multiplies. Different teams may be deploying across different environments using different tooling, which makes maintaining a cohesive security posture increasingly difficult.
The challenge today is no longer just about visibility. Now, it’s about cutting through the noise. Security teams are drowning in alerts, and the real risk is getting lost in the volume they receive. To keep up, we need to shift from static, control-based models to dynamic, runtime-driven approaches that can operate at the speed and scale of the cloud.
As a longtime advocate for women in cybersecurity, what progress have you seen, and what still needs to be done to encourage more diversity and inclusion in the field?
We’ve made real progress. There’s more visibility, community, and support for women in cybersecurity than ever before. More and more women have been encouraged to enter the field and felt a sense of belonging once they’re in it.
But while entry-level representation has improved, it still thins out at the leadership level. That’s where we need to focus our energy next. It’s not just about building pipelines – it’s about building pathways. This means creating structures that support career progression, as well as challenging the assumptions and biases – both systemic and unspoken – that prevent diversity from translating into equity.
How has your background in information security engineering shaped your views on the skills and mindset needed for future security professionals?
Starting out as an engineer gave me a deep respect for the complexity of real-world systems. I learned that nothing is as clean as the architecture diagram, and that security has to account for how systems actually behave, not how we wish they would. This taught me that security isn’t about chasing perfection: it’s about building resilient systems that can fail gracefully.
My background has also shaped how I think about talent. I’ve learned to value curiosity over credentials and creativity over checklists. The best security professionals I’ve worked with aren’t necessarily the ones with the most certifications – they’re the ones who ask the right questions, explore edge cases, and think both like builders and breakers. As security grows more complex, the ability to collaborate across disciplines and solve problems at scale will become increasingly valuable.
What emerging cybersecurity trends are you most excited about, and which do you think organizations should be paying more attention to?
I’m most excited about the shift toward runtime security and attacker-centric defense. The most meaningful innovation today is happening at the point of execution – within workloads, identity systems, and data flows – where attacks actually unfold, not just where we assume they might.
What makes this shift so powerful is that it allows us to detect malicious behavior as it’s happening, and to stop threats before they turn into incidents. Instead of relying solely on static controls or chasing every single theoretical vulnerability, we can use real-time data to focus on actual behavior and intent.
This isn’t just about faster response time – it’s about preventing problems before they escalate. By grounding security in runtime context and attacker behavior, we gain the precision and speed needed to act before risk turns into damage. That’s where I see the future of effective security heading, and where I think more organizations should be focused.
How do you envision the role of runtime security evolving in the next few years as cloud environments become more complex?
Runtime security will become the foundation of modern security programs, not just a supplement. As cloud environments grow more complex, with increasingly ephemeral, AI-driven, and agentic workloads, traditional pre-runtime controls won’t scale. Static scanning and predefined policies can’t keep up with systems that are constantly changing, auto-generating code, or making autonomous decisions.
In this landscape, security will need to be embedded directly into the runtime environment: contextual, continuous, and real-time. It won’t be enough to analyze risks after deployment – they must be observed, detected, and responded to as systems run.
With cloud-native architectures rapidly growing, what are the biggest security gaps you see that companies often overlook?
A key security gap is the disconnect between what’s deployed and what’s actually running. Many companies focus on securing configurations but lack real-time visibility into execution paths, privileged actions, and lateral movement. Attackers exploit this blind spot, moving undetected within environments. Closing this gap requires shifting from static configuration management to continuous, real-time behavior monitoring that detects threats as they happen.
How do you think advancements in AI and automation will impact cybersecurity strategies and defense mechanisms going forward?
Companies must rethink their cybersecurity programs to leverage fully AI’s potential to drive both effectiveness and productivity. Those that fail to do so will absolutely fall behind. AI represents both a challenge and an opportunity in cybersecurity.
On the one hand, attackers are already using AI to scale sophisticated social engineering campaigns and evade traditional defenses, making threats more complex and harder to detect. On the other hand, defenders can use AI to tackle key pain points such as alert fatigue by automating triage and prioritization, simulating advanced threats to improve readiness, and speeding up incident response. Harnessing AI effectively will be foundational for building resilient, adaptive defense mechanisms that can contend with emerging threats.
What advice would you give security leaders who are preparing their teams for the rapidly changing threat landscape and technology innovations?
To prepare their teams for the rapidly changing threat landscape and constant technology innovation, they must prioritize adaptability over rigidity. The pace of change in the cybersecurity space means that no fixed approach will stay relevant for long.
Building teams that can learn quickly, pivot in response to new threats, and experiment with new ideas is essential. Encouraging a culture of curiosity and flexibility is critical in order to stay ahead. It’s equally important to invest in ongoing training for innovation and collaboration – because the threats of tomorrow won’t wait for us to catch up.
By Randy Ferguson