About

Now more than ever, government agencies are under pressure to maintain the confidentiality, integrity and availability of their data and services as they try to adjust to the new reality of a global pandemic. With new threats coming online every day, harnessing next-generation technology and practices is the only way to stop attackers in their tracks.

Register for the on-demand Fal.Con for Public Sector Virtual Cybersecurity Conference. You’ll hear leaders from across federal, state, and local agencies and higher education institutions discuss the importance of real-time threat intelligence, how to best secure the government’s technology supply chain, the impact of AI on data analytics in IT security, and much more!

The virtual conference is available on-demand and free to attend.

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Speakers

Lauren Knausenberger

Chief Innovation Officer, USAF

Lauren Knausenberger recently joined the U.S. Air Force to drive innovation across the Department of Defense, speed adoption of emerging technologies, and create stronger partnerships between DoD, start-ups, and the venture community. Prior to joining the government, Lauren was founder and President of a consulting firm specializing in solving problems of national security importance and investing in commercial technologies that could be applied to a government mission. An enthusiastic Angel investor, Lauren is active with NextGen Angels, has invested in emerging technology companies, such as Graphene Frontiers, and is now applying the VC model to the Air Force through Spark Tank, a DoD version of the Shark Tank television series.

In her role as Chief Transformation Officer she has actively fought to bust traditional barriers to capability development, including shifting the risk equation for cybersecurity accreditation to incentivize rapid adoption of modern, secure systems. As a champion for Kessel Run, Lauren generated the Continuous ATO concept, which helped set the bar for excellence in DevSecOps and enables Air Force software factories to accredit and deploy systems at commercial speed. She was also a major contributor to the recent Fast Track ATO, which emphasizes pen testing and threat/vulnerability assessment over compliance. Through her work with DevSecOps community, Ms. Knausenberger saw a major gap in the way we train and retain our most technologically savvy Airmen and has become a driving force behind the Computer Language Initiative and Digital University, which will be a key delivery mechanism to democratize access to best in class digital learning, gameify the experience, and operationalize the platform to drive future career path decisions, placements, mentorship, special projects, and other retention incentives. Finally, Ms. Knausenberger has collaborated across the Air Force to help drive initiatives such as EITaas, Cloud One, Iron Bank, BYOAD, and others to ensure a seamless strategy to truly deliver value to the warfighter. Finally, Lauren acts as an advisor to AFWERX and connector across the Air Force community to enable projects, remove barriers to entry for best in class businesses, test innovative concepts, and bring new voices and capabilities to the table.

She holds an MBA from the Wharton School of Business, has served as an executive for a large defense contractor, and has extensive experience supporting the intelligence community. Outside of work, Lauren enjoys traveling, trying new cuisine, and chasing two little girls. She also recently founded a STEAM non-profit focused on serving underprivileged HS students. Ms. Knausenberger received a Jimmy Doolittle Fellowship award for Inspiring Air Force Innovation and is included in Fedscoop’s Top Women in Technology.

Michael Geraghty

CISO, State of New Jersey & Director, NJ Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Cell

Michael Geraghty is the State of New Jersey’s Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and Director of the NJ Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Cell (NJCCIC). In these roles Director Geraghty is responsible for the development and execution of the State’ cybersecurity strategy. He is responsible for leading and coordinating New Jersey’s cybersecurity efforts while building resiliency throughout the State and has direct responsibility for all aspects of statewide cybersecurity operations; governance, risk and compliance; and incident response.

Geraghty is an accomplished cybersecurity executive with a history of building innovative and model programs in private and public sector enterprises including roles as CISO of the Hudson’s Bay Company, Chief Information Officer of the National and International Centers for Missing and Exploited Children, Vice President of High Technology Investigations at Prudential Financial, and Network Intrusion Detection Manager, Lucent Technologies/Bell Labs. Geraghty began his career with the New Jersey State Police, where he served 12 years and led the formation and development of its High Technology Crimes Investigations Unit.

He has provided expert testimony before the United States Congress and in federal, state, and international courts on computer crime investigations and forensics. Geraghty is a past president of the Northeast Chapter of the High Technology Crimes Investigation Association and has held leadership roles in the National Strategic Policy Council on Cyber and Electronic Crime.

Bob Kolasky

Director, National Risk Management Center, CISA

Bob Kolasky was selected to lead the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s (CISA) National Risk Management Center (NRMC) in 2018, at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). As Assistant Director, he oversees the Center’s efforts to facilitate a strategic, cross-sector risk management approach to cyber and physical threats to critical infrastructure. The Center provides a central venue for government and industry to combine their knowledge and capabilities in a uniquely collaborative and forward-looking environment. Center activities support both operational and strategic unified risk management efforts.

Mr. Kolasky’s current position is the culmination of years of risk and resilience experience. He most recently served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary and Acting Assistant Secretary for NPPD’s Office of Infrastructure Protection (IP), before it became the CISA Infrastructure Security Division on November 16, 2018, where he led the coordinated national effort to reduce the risk posed by acts of terrorism and other cyber or physical threats to the nation’s critical infrastructure, including soft targets and crowded spaces.

Mr. Kolasky has served in a number of other senior leadership roles, including acting Deputy Under Secretary for NPPD before it became CISA. In that position, he helped to oversee CISA’s efforts to secure the nation’s physical and cyber infrastructure. He has also held a position as the Director of Strategy and Policy for the Infrastructure Security Division, where he led strategic planning, performance management and budgeting for the organization, and served as Director of the DHS Cyber-Physical Critical Infrastructure Integrated Task Force to implement Presidential Policy Directive 21 on Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience, as well as Executive Order 13636 on Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity.

He is also the former Assistant Director for the Office of Risk Management Analysis at DHS where he was responsible for developing policies and processes to enable risk-informed strategic decisions by DHS. Prior to joining DHS, he was a journalist and an entrepreneur. He helped start two of the first public policy web sites and served as the Managing Editor for IntellectualCapital.com.

Mr. Kolasky joined the Federal government in 2008 after six years as a management consultant. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1994 and from the Harvard Kennedy School in 2002.

Ervan Rodgers

CIO & Assistant Director, State of Ohio

Ervan was recently appointed as the State of Ohio’s Chief Information Officer and Assistant Director of the Ohio Department of Administrative Services. As state CIO, Ervan is responsible for the strategic direction and efficient use of information technology across the state and for oversight of state IT activities. Prior to his appointment, Ervan served as the CIO at the Ohio Attorney General’s Office where he focused on developing IT strategies to help better serve and protect Ohioans. Ervan has experience providing IT consulting to global Fortune 100 companies and a successful track record of leading teams and leveraging technology to position companies for growth. This includes hands-on experience with digitizing core business processes, e-business, developing value-added solutions, change management, and mentoring management teams. He served on the board of directors for Ohio Geographically Referenced Information Program, an organization that encourages the creation of digital geographic data of value, State of Ohio CyberOhio advisory board and the Franklin University Cybersecurity and Public Safety advisory board.

Adam Meyers

VP of Intelligence, CrowdStrike

As CrowdStrike’s Vice President of Intelligence, Adam Meyers leads the Threat Intelligence line of business for the company. Meyers directs a geographically dispersed team of cyber threat experts tracking criminal, state-sponsored, and nationalist cyber adversary groups across the globe and producing actionable intelligence to protect customers. He oversees the development and deployment of AI, machine learning, reverse engineering, natural language processing, and other technologies to detect suspicious and malicious cyber behavior and stop increasingly sophisticated adversaries. Meyers’ work in combining human intelligence and intelligence derived from technology continues to transform cybersecurity.

Meyers works closely with other departments within CrowdStrike to ensure the smooth and speedy integration of intelligence into CrowdStrike’s entire lineup of products and services. His team brings unprecedented insights into the activities of cyber threat actors, providing strategic and technical guidance to Fortune 100 businesses, major financial institutions, key government agencies, and other CrowdStrike customers. SC Magazine recently honored CrowdStrike’s record of achievement under Meyers with the 2019 Trust Award for Best Threat Intelligence Technology. Almost every week you will see Myers commenting on recent cyber threats and cyber attacks in leading broadcast, print, and online media.

Shawn Henry

President, CrowdStrike Services & CSO, CrowdStrike

As President of CrowdStrike Services, Shawn leads a world-class team of cybersecurity professionals who aggressively and effectively investigate and mitigate targeted attacks on computer networks. Under his leadership, CrowdStrike has been engaged in significant proactive and incident response operations across every major commercial sector, protecting organizations’ sensitive data and networks.

Shawn retired as FBI Executive Assistant Director (EAD) in 2012, overseeing half of the FBI’s investigative operations, including all FBI criminal and cyber investigations worldwide, international operations, and the FBI’s critical incident response to major investigations and disasters. During his 24- year career, he held a wide range of operational and leadership roles in four FBI Field Offices and FBI Headquarters.

Shawn has been a keynote speaker in some of the largest cyber conferences in venues around the world, a regular contributor on every major domestic television network, and is currently a Cybersecurity/National Security Analyst, Contributor, and Consultant exclusively for NBC. Shawn serves on the Faculty and is a Board Leadership Fellow at the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) where he educates Corporate Boards and Directors about complex cybersecurity issues. He currently serves on the Strategic Advisory Committee of the Global Cyber Alliance.

Shawn earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from Hofstra University and a Master of Science in Criminal Justice Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University. He is a graduate of the Homeland Security Executive Leadership Program of the Naval Postgraduate School’s Center for Homeland Defense and Security.

James Yeager

VP, Public Sector & Healthcare, CrowdStrike

Over the course of his 20+ years in the technology industry, James has established himself as a proven and passionate leader in the information technology and security space. In his role as Vice President of Public Sector and Healthcare, James is responsible for shaping the overall direction of CrowdStrike’s go to market strategy and U.S. expansion within the public sector technology arena. Committed to providing best-in-class innovative cloud security capabilities and services to the Federal, SLED and the Healthcare space, James continues to focus on direct growth strategies as well as the ongoing business development of indirect routes to market via channel partners, systems integrators and strategic technology partnerships. Since joining CrowdStrike in 2017 to launch the public sector organization, it has grown exponentially, both in the capacity to support this highly strategic market segment aimed at protecting some of the nation’s most critical assets, and in revenue, which has grown by more than 650%.

Prior to his arrival at CrowdStrike, James spent three years as the Director of Federal Sales at Tanium. While at Tanium, James rapidly built a Federal business focused on a new and highly disruptive technology that produced over $40M in revenue during his tenure.

Before his time at Tanium, James worked for McAfee, and subsequently Intel Security, where he held various leadership positions within both public sector organizations. Under his direction, James was able to grow a $20M Federal Civilian business unit to north of $50M in less than four years.

James holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from The College of William and Mary. He is also an investor and advisor to MindChild Medical, Inc. a leading firm engaged in the research and development of non-invasive device technology for monitoring fetal/maternal health and management. James resides in Leesburg, VA with his wife and two daughters.

Deborah Blyth

CISO, State of Colorado

In August 2014, Deborah (Debbi) Blyth became the state’s Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), bringing a diverse background including 14 years of information security experience. As the CISO, she serves as the point of contact for all information security initiatives in Colorado, informing the Secretary of Technology & Chief Information Officer and executive agency leadership on security risks and impacts of policy and management decisions on IT-related initiatives. Together with her team, she will be responsible for determining the strategic and tactical security direction for the State to meet established objectives.

Debbi brings a desire for building collaborative working relationships and a highly praised leadership style. Before joining OIT, Debbi spent five years as an Executive Director at TeleTech leading the Information Security and IT Compliance program. Among her many achievements, Debbi built the business case and led a two-year effort to evolve and mature the information security program.

As the Information Technology Security and Compliance Manager at Travelport, Debbi was responsible for establishing and managing a global enterprise information security and compliance program. During her tenure, Debbi led the endeavor to achieve compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) for the company’s first time in 2007.

Debbi earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Regis University, graduating Summa Cum Laude while working full time. Calling herself a native even though she wasn’t born in Colorado, she loves all things Colorado, including the mountains, the sports teams, the weather, and especially the people! She is truly passionate about information security, and is very enthusiastic about this opportunity to perform her career ‘calling’ in service to the residents of the state that she loves.

Maurice Turner*

Sr. Advisor to the Executive Director, U.S. Election Assistance Commission

Maurice Turner is Senior Advisor to the Executive Director providing subject matter expertise in support of local, state, & federal partners to administer elections fairly and securely. Most recently Turner was Deputy Director of the Internet Architecture project at the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) where he led the Election Security and Privacy Project, identifying and updating election cybersecurity practices and infrastructure, and working through potential remedies. Turner also served as a TechCongress Congressional Innovation Fellow assigned to the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, where he shaped policy and oversaw the preparation of memos, briefings, and hearings on federal IT systems, cybersecurity threats, and cybersecurity regulations. He has also played an active role in local elections in California and Virginia, holding progressively responsible positions from clerk to lead inspector overseeing multiple precincts, and providing him with firsthand insight into the transition from paper to electronic ballots. Turner holds an MA in Public Administration from the University of Southern California, an BA in Political Science from California State University Fullerton, and a Certificate in Cybersecurity Strategy from Georgetown University.

Adam Hickey

Deputy Assistant Attorney General, National Security Division, DOJ

Adam S. Hickey is a Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the National Security Division (NSD) at the Department of Justice (DOJ), overseeing the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and the Foreign Investment Review Section. Among other things, he supervises investigations and prosecutions of foreign, state-sponsored computer intrusions and attacks, enforcement of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), and NSD’s foreign investment security reviews (e.g., CFIUS cases). Currently, Hickey focuses much of his time on DOJ’s China Initiative (dedicated to better combatting national security threats from China). Previously, Hickey was a Federal Prosecutor in the Southern District of New York. He is a graduate of Harvard College and Yale Law School.

Tonya Ugoretz

Deputy Assistant Director, Cyber Division, FBI

Tonya Ugoretz is the Deputy Assistant Director (DAD) for the FBI Cyber Division, where she oversees intelligence, policy, technical support to operations, workforce readiness, and outreach. Ms. Ugoretz began government service in 2001 as a Presidential Management Fellow. In 2003, she became the first analyst to serve as the FBI Director’s daily briefer. She held leadership roles in the Directorate of Intelligence, and was the FBI’s Chief Intelligence Officer from 2010 to 2012. She has served in joint dutyassignments with CIA, Customs and Border Protection, and the National Intelligence Council. Most recently, she spent three years as the first Director of ODNI's multiagency Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center (CTIIC). Prior to joining the FBI, Ms. Ugoretz was an editor of foreign policy journals and IEEE publications. Ms. Ugoretz received the National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal from the DNI and the Director's Award for Exceptionally Meritorious Service from the National Counterterrorism Center.

Justin DePalmo

CISO, General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems

Justin DePalmo is the Chief Information Security Officer for General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems headquartered in Saint Petersburg, Florida. Justin has also served as the cyber security subject matter specialist (SMS) for the General Dynamics internal audit program for the 2018-2019 program cycle.

Justin has nearly 13 years of experience within General Dynamics since starting in an End User Support service role and transitioning to Cyber Security. Currently Justin oversees the General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems Cyber Security Analyst Team and Cyber Operations Team holding overall responsibility for all aspects of Cyber Security including implementation and management of Cyber Security Compliance to adhere to NIST 800-171 and Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) requirements, Awareness and Training, Endpoint Detection and Response, Vulnerability Management, Risk Mitigation, Incident Response, and Threat Collaboration.

Justin holds a bachelor’s degree in IT Management and an associate’s degree in computer applications from American Public University and participates on several threat intelligence and information sharing platforms across the Defense Industrial Base community.

Rob Sheldon

Head of Technology Strategy, Public Sector, CrowdStrike

Robert Sheldon is Head of Technology Strategy for Public Sector at CrowdStrike. In that capacity, he covers federal, state, and local government programs, policies, and initiatives, as well as partnerships for the CrowdStrike Foundation. In addition, he is an adjunct fellow with the Technology Policy Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and an adjunct professorial lecturer at American University’s School of International Service.

Previously, he was Policy Director for Emerging Threats at Business Executives for National Security, a membership-driven think tank. From 2013 to 2014, he was a Mike Mansfield Fellow in Tokyo, where he was detailed to the Japanese Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, and the National Diet. In those placements, he worked on a variety of Japanese cybersecurity policy issues and U.S.-Japan cybersecurity cooperation.

Earlier, he was senior policy analyst for military and security affairs at the congressionally-mandated U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, where he led a team of analysts and focused on China's cybersecurity, telecommunications, and technology policies. Mr. Sheldon holds an M.A. in security policy studies from the George Washington University and a B.S. in computer forensics from Champlain College.

Curt Aubley

Sr. Director, Public Sector Strategy & Solutions, CrowdStrike

Curt Aubley is CrowdStrike’s executive leader for Public Sector Strategy & Solutions and was most recently CrowdStrike’s Vice President of World-Wide Solution Architecture. Curt works with CrowdStrike’s customers and partners to develop the strategies, joint innovative capabilities, and board level communications to address the unique challenges of global public-sector customers security needs. Curt is also leading CrowdStrike’s new US DOD Cyber Security Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) initiative to help guide customers through this new cyber security transformation that directly impacts their ability grow their Global Government business.

Curt has over 20 years of innovative technology industry leadership across Operations, Incident Response, R&D, innovation, partnerships, business development, and executive consulting. Curt joined CrowdStrike after a short tour with Tanium as their VP Advanced Technology and Strategic Alliances. Prior to this, he was with Intel Corporation where he was the VP/CTO for the 16B/year Data Center Group where he led innovation, architecture, pathfinding, and sales engineering across Cloud Computing, Cyber Security, Software Defined Infrastructure, AI/Machine Learning, and Ecosystem enablement.

Curt has held global executive leadership and technical positions in both the government and private sectors. Prior to joining Intel, Curt’s MSSP & Data Center management company was acquired by Lockheed Martin in 2002. His last Lockheed Martin position was with the Information Systems & Global Solutions division’s Vice President & Chief Technology Officer. During his tenure, Curt held CTO, CIO, and CSO positions while helping IS&GS grow from a 500M/year business to a 9B/year international business.

Prior to Lockheed Martin, Curt held multiple leadership positions with AT&T, Teradata, and the US Army Signal Corps where he served his combat tour with the 10th Mountain division, 11th Signal brigade in Mogadishu, Somalia.

Curt is an accomplished public speaker and author that includes the following technical merits: CrowdStrike Certified Falcon Administrator (CCFA), CrowdStrike Certified Falcon Responder (CCFR), CrowdStrike Certified Falcon Hunter (CCFH), Certified Information System Security Professional (CISSP), Certified / Qualified Ethical Hacker (CEH/QEH), Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), NSA INFOSEC Assessment & Evaluation Methodologies (IAM & IEM), Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE), received his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Northeastern University, Boston, MA and completed computer engineering graduate work while attending the Air Force Institute of Technology located in Dayton, OH where he completed the U.S. Army’s Teleprocessing Operations Officer Course.

Joseph Daniels

CIO, Illinois State Treasurer

Joseph Daniels is the Chief Information Officer for the Illinois State Treasurer. With over 12 years of active Cyber Security Experience both in Government and in the Private Sector, Joseph brings a wealth of knowledge that helps local Government remain agile and innovative in today’s Cyber Landscape. Joseph’s expertise is noted for the ability to build and grow the right teams for the right environment, replacing legacy infrastructure with modern technology, and being a Steward of trust for the people we serve. In addition to his role as the CIO for the State Treasurer, Joseph is also an active member of the Illinois National Guard, with several years on the Defensive Cyber Operations element.

Michael Sentonas

CTO, CrowdStrike

Mike Sentonas is CrowdStrike’s Chief Technology Officer. Previously, he served as Vice President, Technology Strategy at CrowdStrike. With over 20 years’ experience in cybersecurity, Mike’s most recent roles prior to joining CrowdStrike were Chief Technology Officer – Security Connected and Chief Technology and Strategy Officer APAC, both at McAfee (formerly Intel Security). Mike is an active public speaker on security issues and provides advice to government and business communities on global and local cyber security threats.

He is highly-sought after to provide insights into security issues and solutions by the media including television, technology trade publications and technology centric websites. Michael has spoken around the world at numerous sales conferences, customer and non-customer conferences and contributes to various government and industry associations’ initiatives on security. Michael holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Edith Cowan University, Western Australia and has an Australian Government security clearance.

Thomas Etheridge

SVP of Services, CrowdStrike

Thomas Etheridge is the Senior Vice President of Services at CrowdStrike and has overall financial, operational, and delivery management responsibility for CrowdStrike’s Professional Services and Managed Services portfolio. In this role, he is responsible for leading the development, marketing and delivery of Services offerings ranging from incident response and forensic investigative services, strategic advisory services, technical assessment services, educational services as well as CrowdStrike's Falcon Complete (MDR) and 24/7 Managed Threat Hunting capability (Overwatch). These services collectively are designed to help CrowdStrike customers improve their detection, prevention, response, and recovery/remediation capabilities for cyber threats. He provides oversight for the business and technical operations teams to enable CrowdStrike’s scalable, highly efficient, and compliant solutions delivering success for all customers globally.

Prior to joining CrowdStrike, Thomas spent over 18 years building and running world-class professional services teams for technology companies operating in the security domain. Most recently, he was responsible for running global services and training delivery for Imperva. Prior to Imperva, Thomas held senior leadership roles leading security services organizations for ArcSight/HP, Aveksa/RSA and Netegrity/CA.

His broad base of knowledge and experience covers the SIEM, SOC, Incident Response, Forensics, Compliance, Cloud, Endpoint Protection, Network Security, Identity Management, Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC), and Cyber Advisory spaces.

Thomas is a graduate of Northeastern University in Boston, MA where he earned a Bachelor of Science Degree, represented the University as Chief Justice of the Student Court, and successfully completed internships with MA Superior Court Judge Robert M. Bonin and in former Governor Michael Dukakis’s Legal Office.

He is a sought-after speaker and media spokesperson on topics related to security trends, incident response, security best practices, and more.

Danny Connelly

Acting Deputy CISO, CDC

Danny Connelly is the Acting Deputy Chief Information Security Officer for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), currently overseeing the Cybersecurity Program Office (CSPO), Policy, Risk & Compliance, Advanced Threat Protection, Engineering and Technologies and Cyber Intelligence and Insider Threat Branches.

Mr. Connelly began his career at CDC in 2009 and has served in multiple capacities. Prior to his current role, he served as the Associate Chief Information Security Officer from 2011 to 2019, where he was responsible for overseeing cyber security operations to include the Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT), cyber forensics, threat intel/hunt, continuous monitoring, CDM, firewall management and enterprise security architecture. During his tenure at CDC, Danny has been instrumental in architecting, implementing and optimizing cyber security capabilities to effectively detect, prevent and respond to today’s ever changing cyber security threats.

Prior to joining CDC, Mr. Connelly spent 5 years serving as a key member of the Department Of Energy (DOE) Cyber Security Penetration Testing Team, focused on attacking critical DOE facilities and infrastructure. He led numerous engagements for both classified and unclassified targets and participated in many covert operations emulating advanced threat actors.

Quiessence Phillips

Deputy CISO & Head of Threat Management, City of New York

Quiessence is a cybersecurity professional with 12+ years of experience working within the financial industry and most recently in the public sector, where she joined the City of New York as Deputy CISO. At New York City Cyber Command, she leads the Threat Management function, which encompasses the City’s Security Operations Center, Computer Emergency Response, Cyber Threat Intelligence, Counter Threat Automation teams.

Quiessence has been recognized as “Best of New York” by City Tech Foundation, published in “Women Know Cyber: 100 Fascinating Females Fighting Cybercrime”, awarded Security Team of the Year for public sector by FireEye. Additionally, in an effort to assist women interested in forging their path in the industry, Quiessence created ‘Securing Your Path’.

For more information about her, visit https://itsquiessence.com

Twitter: @itsquiessence
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/quiessencephillips

Elia Zaitsev

CTO of the Americas, CrowdStrike

Elia Zaitsev is CrowdStrike’s Chief Technology Officer for the Americas. His primary responsibility is to help create and communicate CrowdStrike’s long-range technical vision and product strategy through close collaboration with internal engineering, product development, customers and partners.

Elia joined CrowdStrike in early 2013 as its first Sales Engineer, and previously served as the Vice President of Sales Engineering in the Americas. During that time, he grew the organization from a handful of members to almost 100 strong, while increasing revenue by 4,400%.

He has spoken at numerous events around the world including several key notes at the Black Hat and RSA conferences. Prior to joining CrowdStrike he spent several years at IBM, i2, and Northrop Grumman where he consulted with a variety of Public and Private sector organizations on topics such as system architecture and large-scale data analytics. Elia holds a ME in Engineering Management and BS in Operations Research and Industrial Engineering from Cornell University.

Bryan Ware

Assistant Director for Cybersecurity, CISA

Bryan S. Ware serves as the Assistant Director for Cybersecurity for the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). In this role, Mr. Ware leads CISA’s mission of protecting and strengthening the nation’s critical infrastructure against cyber threats.

Previously, Mr. Ware served as the DHS Assistant Secretary for Cyber, Infrastructure, and Resilience Policy. In this role, Mr. Ware was responsible for leading DHS policy development in support of department-wide efforts to reduce national risks with a focus on critical infrastructure cybersecurity, federal network security, countering cyber-crime, and improving the security and resilience of the global cyber ecosystem, as well as national resilience initiatives that enhance Federal, State and local government and community preparedness and response capabilities.

Mr. Ware is an entrepreneur, founding an artificial intelligence company in 1998 which he led as CEO through multiple rounds of Venture Capital investment until it was acquired in 2013 by Haystax. After serving as CTO of Haystax for several years during which he helped the company acquire leading cloud technology and cybersecurity companies, Bryan took over as CEO of Haystax in 2016 until its acquisition in 2018. Mr. Ware started his professional career at leading Defense contractors working on advanced technology programs like the Star Wars program, early UAV payloads, and counterterrorism technologies.

Mr. Ware has been issued multiple patents in artificial intelligence and mobile technology. He holds a degree in Applied Optics from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

Aaron Baillio

CISO, University of Oklahoma

I've spent the first 11 years of my career with the Department of Defense. With them I traveled the world and supported both in garrison and deployed network operations. My primary missions were information assurance and security engineering. I am currently the Chief Information Security Officer for the University of Oklahoma and have been with OU for the last 5 years. We support 45k faculty/staff and students across three campuses including a Health Sciences Center. Security at OU is supported by three pillars: Security Operations, Governance, Risk and Compliance and Training & Awareness. We currently have around 20 security professionals including 3 students who support Tier 1 operations in the SOC.

Joyce Corell

Assistant Director, Supply Chain Directorate, National Counterintelligence & Security Center

Ms. Corell is the Assistant Director of the Supply Chain Directorate of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center. Prior to this posting, she was the Assistant Director for the Strategic Capabilities Directorate of the Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive.

Ms. Corell served at the National Security Agency (NSA) for 23 years. Her most recent job was the Chief of Technology Policy in the NSA Commercial Solutions Center. Ms. Corell spent a significant portion of her career focused on various aspects of defensive and offensive computer network operations, from capability development to the development of national policy and legislation. Complementing these roles, Ms. Corell also led various activities surrounding partnerships with the private sector ranging from technology transfer, export licensing, and the development of strategic alliances, both domestic and international.

Ms. Corell graduated from William & Mary with a B.A. in Political Science. She received an M.S. in National Security Strategy from the National War College.

Tina Thorstenson

Deputy CIO & CISO, Arizona State University

Tina Thorstenson is Deputy CIO and Chief Information Security Officer at Arizona State University responsible for IT Governance, Policy, and Information Security. She leads IT alignment and enhancement activities across ASU, supporting a variety of activities designed to accelerate support for innovation, improve agility, provide relevant policies and standards, drive operational excellence, and improve transparency of technology-related initiatives.

Jerry Dixon

CISO, CrowdStrike

Jerry Dixon is the Chief Information Security Officer at CrowdStrike, with more than two decades of cybersecurity experience on the front lines of incident response, cyber crisis management, national cybersecurity policy and critical infrastructure protection.

Previously, he served as vice president, cyber threat intelligence and incident response at American Express, where he spearheaded the creation of forward-looking strategies to operationalize threat intelligence, incident response, and computer network defense.

Jerry has held multiple leadership positions at top-tier security companies and government agencies, including executive director-level positions at the Department of Homeland Security National Cyber Security Division and United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team.

Maria Barsallo Lynch

Executive Director, Defending Digital Democracy Project (D3P), Harvard's Belfer Center

Maria Barsallo Lynch is the Executive Director of the Defending Digital Democracy Project (D3P) at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Barsallo Lynch brings a background in politics and an academic background at the cross section of cybersecurity and technology to the leadership team of D3P. She has helped grow the project’s work and impact in providing solutions and tools to keep democratic processes safe. She believes in the importance of helping decision makers and consumers gain literacy in the growing fields of cybersecurity, technology innovation, and the space in between.

Barsallo Lynch has rooted her work in seeking systemic change for challenging social issues by leading funding strategy and program implementation in the nonprofit and political arenas. Her background includes serving as Deputy Finance Director for Colorado’s U.S. Senator Michael Bennet and as Director of Development for the Knowledge is Power Program of Colorado Schools. She was a Legislative Fellow with U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal and while at Harvard Kennedy School as a student, conducted research on legislative efforts in data privacy and regulation of technology companies. Barsallo Lynch is also the founder of a social enterprise called DESDE.

Barsallo Lynch holds a B.A. from The Colorado College and serves on its Alumni Association Committee. She also holds an M.P.A. from the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government. She is an alumna of the International DO School Fellowship.

The Defending Digital Democracy Project (D3P) brings together a unique combination of bipartisan experts in the political, cyber, technology, and national security fields to identify and recommend strategies and tools to protect democratic processes and systems from cyber and information attacks.

Matt Masterson

Sr. Cybersecurity Advisor, CISA

Matthew Masterson currently serves as senior cybersecurity advisor at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, where he focuses on election security issues. Previously Masterson served as a commissioner at the US Election Assistance Commission from December 2014 until March 2018 including serving as the Commission’s Chairman in 2017–2018. Prior to that, he held staff positions with the Ohio Secretary of State’s office, where he oversaw voting-system certification efforts and helped develop an online voter registration system. Masterson holds a law degree from the University of Dayton, School of Law and BS and BA degrees from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

Otavio Freire

President, CTO & Co-Founder, Safeguard Cyber

Mr. Freire is a Brazilian-born American entrepreneur and inventor. As the President, CTO and Co-Founder of SafeGuard Cyber, Mr. Freire is responsible for the development and continuous innovation of SafeGuard Cyber's enterprise platform, which enables global enterprise customers to extend cyber security to social media and digital channels. He brings rich experience in social media applications, internet commerce and information technology serving the pharmaceutical, financial services, high-tech and government verticals. Mr. Freire has a BS in Civil Engineering, an MS in Management Information Systems and an MBA from the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, where he currently serves as a visiting executive lecturer. His expertise has been featured in Bloomberg Businessweek, The Guardian, BBC News, and The Washington Post among others.

Jason Christopher

Principal Cyber Risk Advisor, Dragos

Jason Christopher is a Principal Cyber Risk Advisor at the industrial cybersecurity company Dragos, Inc., where he blends innovative approaches for risk management with state-of-the-art technology and services across the company’s product catalogue.

With over 15 years experience in cybersecurity and industrial control systems, Jason offers critical infrastructure expertise in developing successful cyber risk strategies.

Prior to Dragos, Jason held multiple roles in industry as an executive leader, researcher, regulator, and engineer. As CTO of Axio, a cyber risk management SaaS company, he pioneered new cyber risk techniques for clients to measure and address their risk exposure. He previously led security metrics R&D at the Electric Power Research Institute where he worked directly with utilities on actionable measurement capabilities. While working for the United States government, Mr. Christopher spearheaded the energy sector strategy for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework, the Cybersecurity Capability Maturity Model (C2M2), and was the technical lead for the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) Standards.

Michael Jackson

Leader, Public Health & US Elections, Amazon Web Services

Since joining AWS in 2016, Jackson has established and scaled multiple mission-critical vertical businesses, including Public Health and US Elections, Legislative & Political Solutions, which improve outcomes and drive revenue growth in regulated industries.

Prior to Amazon, Jackson served as General Manager of Consumer Health at Intel Corporation, where he developed global lines of business for patient-generated health data (PGHD) platforms; and as Director of Healthcare & Digital Government at Adobe Systems, where he led the commercialization of digital health solutions currently trusted to help power federal, state, and private Health Benefits Exchanges in over 30 US states.

Jackson earned a Master of Business Administration degree and a Bachelor’s degree in Management Information Systems from the University of Baltimore. He is also a proud veteran of the US Coast Guard and serves on multiple boards, including the Board of Directors at Health Care for the Homeless, an innovative non-profit provider of coordinated care and housing services in Baltimore, MD.

Michael South

Americas Regional Leader for Public Sector Security & Compliance, Amazon Web Services

Michael joined Amazon Web Services (AWS) in 2017 as the Americas Regional Leader for Public Sector Security & Compliance out of Herndon, VA. He supports customer executives build a strategy for how they can achieve their business objectives and improve their security and compliance in the Cloud. His customers include national/federal governments, militaries, state/provincial governments, academic institutions, and non-profits from North to South America. Michael’s most notable leadership positions prior to AWS include the Deputy Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) for the city of Washington, DC, the U.S. Navy’s Operations Officer for networks and telecommunications in Europe, the U.S. Navy’s Regional CISO in Asia, and the U.S. Navy’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) for Japan.

Stan Lowe

Global CISO, Zscaler

Stan Lowe, a cybersecurity and technology executive, has successfully led transformational change in large, complex environments, as well as small and mid-size cybersecurity and IT organizations.

As Zscaler Global Chief Information Security Officer, Stan oversees the security of the Zscaler enterprise and works with the product and operations groups to ensure that Zscaler products and services are secure. Part of his focus is to work with customers to help them fully utilize Zscaler services and realize the maximum return on their investment.

Prior to joining Zscaler, Stan served as the VP & Global Chief Information Security Officer for PerkinElmer, where he was responsible for global enterprise security and privacy. He has also been a Cyber Security Principal at Booz Allen Hamilton.

Stan has extensive federal experience, serving as the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Deputy Assistant Secretary for Information Security, Chief Information Security Officer, and Deputy Chief Privacy Officer, as well as Deputy Director of the Department of Defense/VA Interagency Program Office. Before joining the VA, Stan served as Chief Information Officer of the Federal Trade Commission. Stan’s public service record extends to the U.S. Department of Interior in the Bureau, the U.S. Postal Service Inspector General, and the U.S. Navy.

Stan has also served as an executive in several technology startups, and currently serves on several boards advising on cybersecurity. He is a frequent speaker and writer on security topics.

Brandon Dixon

VP of Strategy, RiskIQ

Brandon has spent his career in information security performing analysis, building tools, and refining processes. As VP of Strategy, he is responsible for aligning RiskIQ to the market, influencing product strategy and furthering partnerships. Prior to RiskIQ, Brandon was the co-founder of PassiveTotal (acquired by RiskIQ) where he led development and product direction. Throughout the years, Brandon has developed several public tools, most notably PDF X-RAY, and NinjaJobs. His research and development on various security topics have gained him accolades from many major security vendors and peers in the industry.

Ryan Kalember

Executive VP, Cybersecurity Strategy, Proofpoint

With 20 years of experience in the information security industry, Mr. Kalember currently leads cybersecurity strategy for Proofpoint and is a sought-out expert for leadership and commentary on breaches and best practices. His global team of security experts ensures that Proofpoint’s customers have consistent insight into the attacks that target their people and the best defenses they can implement to mitigate them.

Mr. Kalember joined Proofpoint from WatchDox where he served as chief product officer, leading the development of pioneering data-centric security solutions through to the company’s acquisition. Previously, Ryan ran solutions across HP’s portfolio of security products, was director of product strategy at ArcSight, and held a variety of positions at VeriSign, including EMEA regional manager and senior product manager. Early in his career, Ryan was a security practitioner, helping build many leading security organizations and security operations centers (SOCs) around the world. He received his bachelor's degree from Stanford University, where he studied fault tolerance, cryptography, and authentication algorithms.

Throughout his career, Ryan has provided cybersecurity counsel to global government delegations including Jordan, North Macedonia, Peru, and Spain, and is a board member of the US National Cyber Security Alliance and the Cybersecurity Technical Advisory Board. As a result, he is a go-to source for breaking security news, regularly providing insight to Sky News, CBS This Morning, BBC News, Bloomberg, Bloomberg Radio, CNBC, Forbes, Fortune, NBC Nightly News, USA Today, WIRED, Vox, and The Economist.

James Christiansen

VP, Cloud Security Transformation, Netskope

James Christiansen is Netskope’s vice president of cloud security transformation and leader of the Global Chief Strategy Office. He is focused on enhancing Netskope’s global clients understand the challenges and solutions of cloud deployments by helping drive thought leadership in cloud security transformation.

James brings extensive expertise as a global leader in information security. Prior to joining Netskope, he was vice president CISO at Teradata where he led the global security, physical, and information security teams. Previously, James was vice president of information risk management at Optiv, chief information risk officer for Evantix, and CISO at Experian Americas, General Motors, and Visa International.

Ben Smith

VP, CISO, Nuvance Health

Ben serves as the VP, Chief Information Security Officer of Nuvance Health. He is committed to protecting the information that is entrusted to Nuvance by the communities the Health System serves. In support of Nuvance’s goals, Ben oversees the Information Security and IT Risk Management vision, strategy, delivery, and operations for the Health System.

For over 18 years, Ben has been dedicated to building world class Information Security and IT Risk Management Organizations within the healthcare industry. Prior to Nuvance, Ben served as the Chief Information Security Officer of MultiCare Health serving Washington and Idaho as well as Manager of Information Security and Information Security Officer for Rochester Regional Health System.

Ben earned his Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems and his Executive Master of Business Administration from the Saunders College of Business at the Rochester Institute of Technology. He has also achieved the CISSP, CISM and CPHIT certifications.

Nuvance Health is a not-for-profit health care organization with more than 15,000 team members. The Health System is comprised of 7 hospitals and more than 100 hundred clinics serving the Northern NYC Suburbs of NY and CT.

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