Octavia Howell – VIPSS24
Chief Information Security Officer, Equifax Canada; Founder & CEO, Augustus Redefined
Recognized as one of the 2022 Top 20 Women in Canada, Octavia Howell has spent her career protecting some of the world’s largest financial institutions from cyber-attacks. Today, she serves as Equifax Canada’s Chief Information Security Officer and is the Founder and CEO of Augustus Redefined, an organization focused on the advancement of Black Women in Cybersecurity. Octavia believes that a security leader should mentor, motivate trust, and lead their teams to act with integrity and openness. Octavia genuinely believes that we are placed on this earth to help each other achieve greatness (whatever that may be).
Octavia received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Computer Science and Mathematics from
Spelman College and holds CISSP, GISP, GCWN and GSLC GIAC certifications. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, the International Information Systems Security Consortium (ISC2), the Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA), the Information Systems Security Association (ISSA), serves on the Advisory Board for SiberX, is a member of and leads the CISO Forum for the Information Technology Senior Management Forum (ITSMF). In her spare time, Octavia enjoys traveling, spending time with her family, and nurturing leaders within the industry.
Recognized as one of the 2022 Top 20 Women in Canada, Octavia Howell has spent her career protecting some of the world’s largest financial institutions from cyber-attacks. Today, she serves as Equifax Canada’s Chief Information Security Officer and is the Founder and CEO of Augustus Redefined, an organization focused on the advancement of Black Women in Cybersecurity. Octavia believes that a security leader should mentor, motivate trust, and lead their teams to act with integrity and openness. Octavia genuinely believes that we are placed on this earth to help each other achieve greatness (whatever that may be).
Octavia received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Computer Science and Mathematics from
Spelman College and holds CISSP, GISP, GCWN and GSLC GIAC certifications. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, the International Information Systems Security Consortium (ISC2), the Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA), the Information Systems Security Association (ISSA), serves on the Advisory Board for SiberX, is a member of and leads the CISO Forum for the Information Technology Senior Management Forum (ITSMF). In her spare time, Octavia enjoys traveling, spending time with her family, and nurturing leaders within the industry.
