FALL 2023 SPEAKERS AND TOPICS
Keynote: Sarah Alt
Sarah Alt is an accomplished professional in ethical artificial intelligence with extensive information technology expertise working for and consulting with Fortune 1000 companies, professional services firms, institutions of higher education, startups, and nonprofits. As the Chief Process & AI Officer for Michael Best, Sarah spearheads the integration of AI technologies and strategies to drive innovation, excellence and client value. Sarah is a sought-after speaker at industry conferences and events, where she shares her knowledge and experiences of designing, developing, and deploying AI responsibly. Sarah has also contributed to and is a practitioner of the ethical guidelines and standards for the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Sarah was named one of Relativity's 2023 AI Visionaries, featuring early adopters in legal, compliance, and risk who are playing a seminal role in advancing the use of artificial intelligence in their organizations.
SPEAKING TOPIC: No AI Was Harmed for this Keynote
People are more than twice as likely to stay loyal to and defend a brand they trust, even in the face of disruption. Trustworthiness starts with your ability to explain how technology works. We need this technology for the awesome power it will give us to be more successful at our jobs. The black-box nature of the algorithms may mean we can't explain how they were trained, how they work, or how they are hardened from attack. So, where does that leave us as consumers of this technology in terms of trust, privacy, and ethical responsibility? We're all starting from a different place, running at a different pace, in a different race with AI. How might we make sure the end is ethical, responsible, and trustworthy?
Jon Clay
SPEAKING TOPIC: Resilience in an Evolving Threat Landscape
AI has been used in cybersecurity for nearly 20 years, but we are seeing a renewed interest from both adversaries and defenders due to the more advanced use of generative AI (GAI). In this session, we'll look at the history of AI in cybersecurity, the latest uses by adversaries and defenders, and the inevitable impact it'll have on the future.
Jon uses his 25+ years of cybersecurity industry experience to educate and share insights on all Trend Micro externally published threat research and intelligence. He delivers webinars, writes blogs, and engages customers and the general public on the state of cybersecurity around the world. An accomplished public speaker, Jon has delivered hundreds of speaking sessions globally. He focuses on the threat landscape, cybercriminal undergrounds, the attack lifecycle, and the use of advanced detection technologies in protecting against today's sophisticated threats.
Laura Harder
A seasoned cybersecurity maven, Laura Harder combines 23 years of military service and two decades of private sector in Space & Intelligence, ICS/SCADA and Cloud cybersecurity experience. Currently, she's a Cloud Solutions Technical Strategist at VMware supporting CSP Partners and the Enterprise Services Flight Commander for the 53rd Network Operations Squadron as an Air Force reservist. Earning the ISSA Fellow distinction in 2022, she's an active volunteer on the ISSA International board of directors and leads the Northern Colorado chapter of ISSA. Laura also holds numerous Information Technology certifications, including CISSP, CompTIA Security +, Project +, Scrum Agile Product Owner, Scrum Master, and various Microsoft certifications. An avid speaker and pillar in the cybersecurity community, Laura brings extensive experience and expertise to the table.
SPEAKING TOPIC: Unleashing the Power: Advanced Insights into Artificial Intelligence in Cybersecurity
Dive into the captivating realm of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in cybersecurity. Explore the cutting-edge advancements and sophisticated techniques of AI as it reshapes the landscape of digital defense. Through practical demonstrations, witness the power of AI-driven tools in action, showcasing their ability to analyze vast datasets, detect anomalies, and thwart emerging cyber threats. Gain a deep understanding of AI-driven threat intelligence, anomaly detection, behavior analytics, and predictive modeling for enhanced security. Uncover the challenges and opportunities that come with integrating AI into cybersecurity operations at an advanced level. Prepare to expand your knowledge, fortify your defenses, and be inspired by the transformative potential of AI in the realm of cybersecurity.
Janelle Hsia & Nicole Nguyen
Janelle Hsia, Founder and President of Privacy SWAN Consulting
Janelle is focused on privacy and data protection and brings a diverse background with strong leadership, technical, and business skills spanning over 20 years. Because she is not a lawyer, she brings a unique perspective to integrating privacy with security and technology, which helps companies operationalize their privacy requirements. She is an IAPP Official Training Partner, an Institute of Operational Privacy Design Founding Board Member, an ISSA Privacy SIG Tri-Chair, the Crossroads School Board President, and an IEEE Digital Privacy Initiative member. She is also a member of CSA, ISACA, and PMI. She holds the following certifications CIPM, CIPT, CIPP/US/E, CDPSE, CISA, PMP, and GSLC. She is a frequent speaker at local and national events and a past guest of the Colorado=Security Podcast.
Nicole Nguyen, Senior Data Privacy Analyst at Janus Henderson
Nicole Nguyen is an enthusiastic privacy professional, deftly bridging technology, business, and law. Beginning in intellectual property and patent prosecution, she gained practical legal insights and technical acumen, which she later applied to data privacy across various regulated industries. She honed her skills across operations, regulatory analysis, and engineering, to streamline data handling, shape privacy policies, and drive privacy-by-design principles. Recognized for her leadership and technical prowess, Nicole guides strategic decisions, resolves complex issues, and bolsters business resilience. Her passion lies in crafting comprehensive data governance programs, weaving security, privacy, and risk disciplines into robust frameworks that safeguard business value and promote a future-ready, privacy-conscious culture. B.S. Chemical and Electrical Engineering and M.S. Information Systems, Cybersecurity and Business Intelligence
SPEAKING TOPIC: Are you smart enough to use AI?
Today Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be the dividing line between who gets help and who is left behind. An algorithm can not only be racist and decide who deserves what, but it can also lie faster and more convincingly. We will explore the following areas with a deep dive into how companies utilize AI by extracting personal data and impacting our everyday lives. We will analyze these technologies and review some unintended consequences and privacy harms like economic loss, social stigmatization, loss of autonomy, and discrimination that can be caused without careful implementation.
· Content generation
· Use of biometric data
· Prediction systems with legal implications
We will provide considerations regarding whether or not to integrate AI into your tech stack or engage in 3rd party services to perform the tasks for you.
Dr. Erik Huffman
Dr. Erik Huffman is an award-winning educator, entrepreneur, and cybersecurity professional. Dr. Huffman is a founding researcher in the emerging field of Cyberpsychology, the study of how the human brain works while in a cyber environment. His research has begun to uncover biological deficiencies in humans that function for survival in face-to-face interaction, but does not activate in a cyber environment. He has applied his research in over 100 organizations worldwide. His research focuses on mental biological deficiencies that every person has in a cyber environment that allow attacks, like phishing and digital social engineering to continue to thrive. It is well noted that people are the weakest link and Dr. Huffman is working to specifically explain how the problem is existing and what can be done to mitigate. To date Dr. Huffman has conducted studies totaling over 20,000 participants.
SPEAKING TOPIC: Cyberpsychology and AI
What happens when machines become human-like? According to 2023 data breach investigation reports human-error is the cause of 74% of data breaches. With mass adoption of general AI this may cause a rise in more sophisticated digital social engineering attempts. This talk analyzes how the brain interprets AI facial recognition, the principles of influence used in these attacks, and the future of social engineering. Humans are not the weakest link, but be the best solution.
Craig Pfister joined Kiteworks in 2018 and manages the global pre-sales engineering team. His responsibilities include communicating Kiteworks technical capabilities to current and prospective customers, overseeing all proofs of value, and collaborating with Kiteworks engineering team on platform functionality. Prior to Kiteworks, Craig was VP of Portfolio Analysis with FactSet Research Systems, an integrated financial data and software company.
Craig Pfister
SPEAKING TOPIC: Safeguarding Data Privacy and protecting IP in the Age of AI
Artificial intelligence holds great promise for advancing business, but also poses emerging threats if intellectual property and private data inadvertently leak into models. In this presentation, we'll explore how and why companies must implement rigorous controls like encryption, access management, and monitoring at the content layer (vs. network and application layers) to ensure sensitive data doesn't leak into AI systems. We'll also examine how there will be a resurgence of DRM (Digital Rights Management) within organizational tech and security stacks as an approach to protecting unstructured data from AI ingestion.
Brad Rager
SPEAKING TOPIC: The coming wave is here: Impact of AI on careers in cybersecurity
AI has already gone through a few hype cycles, but the future that so many have been discussing is already here. We will examine the impact that advances in artificial intelligence will have on careers in cybersecurity over the next several years from several angles: 1) Impact on the types of security jobs that will be in demand in the future, 2) In demand skills and skill development, and 3) How AI will change the process of job seeking and hiring.
Brad is the founder & CEO of Crux, the first talent platform for cybersecurity. Before founding Crux, he led strategy and marketing for Optiv Security, where he was responsible for setting the company's growth and transformation agenda.
Gina Yacone
Gina is the Advisory CISO for TRACE3's Mountain State region, based in Denver, Colorado. Gina aids senior security leaders by offering insight into the latest industry trends, assessing vulnerabilities, architecting robust security frameworks, and implementing advanced security solutions tailored to protect precious digital assets. Previously, Gina was responsible for protecting numerous organizations as a vCISO and senior cybersecurity consultant. Her experience spans a multitude of sectors: healthcare, biotech, pharmaceuticals, hedge funds, alternative investments, insurance, education, manufacturing, technology, local government, and more.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gina served as the vCISO for three hospitals, ensuring their cybersecurity infrastructure remained unbreachable amidst the global crisis. Additionally, Gina helped a startup that built a Managed Detection and Response (MDR) and threat intelligence platform - a venture later acquired by Sophos. Gina was entrusted with comprehensive security strategy oversight in her vCISO role, spanning areas like governance, risk, compliance, risk assessments, audits, incident response, threat intelligence, and the secure software development life cycle (SDLC).
Beyond her professional achievements, Gina supports continuous learning and community engagement. She's earned her master’s degree in Cybersecurity from the University of New Hampshire's School of Engineering and possesses seven revered security certifications, including accolades from ISACA, HITRUST, (ISC)², and CompTIA. A sought-after voice, she's delivered insights at over 50 conferences and holds memberships in esteemed organizations such as ISSA, ISACA, and WiCyS.
With a mission that transcends her professional roles, Gina's commitment to fortifying organizations against cyber threats and nurturing the next generation of information security professionals remains unwavering
SPEAKING TOPIC: The CISO's Playbook: Crafting a Cybersecurity Strategy for AI
The journey of artificial intelligence has unfolded over several decades, yet the latest developments in generative AI have been remarkably transformative, resulting in groundbreaking progress that has deeply influenced our end-users this year. As such, for those in mid-to-senior security leadership roles, understanding the unique AI challenges in cybersecurity is critical for protecting an organization's assets and data.
This talk will help empower security leaders with the necessary knowledge to develop a strategic approach to AI cybersecurity. By recognizing AI's unique challenges, implementing proactive security measures, and promoting continuous improvement, organizations can bolster their systems' robustness and resilience against cyber threats.
As AI systems increasingly integrate into daily operations, security leaders must comprehend the challenges and proactively implement strategies that respond to and anticipate cyber threats. This approach will protect the organization's assets and data while building trust with stakeholders and end-users who depend on the systems' robustness and resilience.