We’re excited to welcome Kevin Rickard to the team as our very first Chief Information Security Officer, or CISO. Kevin joins us with a deep security expertise, having built programs from the ground up for other consumer brands. Beyond his successes in the industry, Kevin spent six years in the Army Reserves, including a deployment to Afghanistan.
He’ll now turn his focus to Metromile, safeguarding our consumer data and ensuring the trust of our many stakeholders, from employers to customers and many others.
The security landscape is complex and changes fast, and a CISO operates as both a technician—ensuring we’re compliant with a number of complex sets of regulations—and a leader—educating every Metromiler on security practices and making clear the responsibility of each individual. “Our industry is highly regulated with fifty Departments of Insurance and States Attorneys General all with data protection rules, in addition to a number of state data privacy laws.. And as a public company we have additional requirements to adhere to,” he said.
“Just as important, our customers and employees trust us with an enormous amount of personal data. As custodians of that data, we must ensure we have effective controls in place to protect this valuable commodity.”
Kevin’s excited to bring his leadership to a place that’s shaking up the status quo, too.
“I never thought insurance could be exciting. I guess that’s what makes an industry ripe for disruption. Metromile’s ability to create a fair product that prices based more on actual, individual risk than perceived, group risk is appealing. I was especially drawn to the idea of minimizing, and eventually eliminating, credit scores from pricing, which often adversely impacts the most economically vulnerable.”
“I’m a low-mileage driver since COVID, and my daughter will get her license soon, too, so I’m looking forward to becoming a Metromile customer.” Add in a remote-friendly workplace, and a culture that’s flexible and embraces change, and it was a good fit.
What’s Kevin’s number one security tip? Set up that password manager you’ve been dragging your feet on, and turn on multi-factor authentication! “We tend to reuse the same passwords or a set of rotating passwords. MFA adds another layer of security in the event our passwords are compromised,” he shared.
Looking ahead, Kevin’s goals are to build a crack security team that ensures a smooth and secure future. “My foundational principle is that security should enable the business. With the right team and controls in place, the company can achieve its objectives securely. There’s no reason good security has to be a drag—security can move at the speed of our business.”
Welcome, Kevin. We’re thrilled to have you leading the way.
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By the way, Kevin is hiring! Take a look at our careers page for open roles on the security team and others.