(ISC)² Blog

Associate of (ISC)²: Thien Phan

Name: Thien Phan (ISC)² Exams Passed: CISSP and CCSP Title: Cybersecurity, Privacy and IT Risk Associate Employer: PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Location: New York City, NY, U.S.A. Education: MBA degree and Bachelor’s Degree in Management Information Systems (MIS) from Binghamton University Years in IT: 1 year Years in cybersecurity: 1 year Cybersecurity certifications: Security+, CCNA Cyber Ops How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? It was back in my third year of college when I interned for a multimedia company as a database administrator. I did not know much about how different technologies worked together. I was introduced to the... Read more →

HCISPP Spotlight: Debi Carr

Name: Debi Carr Title: CEO and Consultant Employer: D. K. Carr and Associates, LLC Location: Christmas, FL, U.S.A. Years in IT: 28 years Years in cybersecurity and/or privacy: 20 years Cybersecurity certifications: HCISPP, CAHIMS How did you decide upon a career in healthcare security and/or privacy? As a practice manager of a healthcare practice, I was appointed the “Privacy and Security” Officer when HIPAA went into effect. I was also responsible for overseeing the technology in the practice through the years. As a result, I began educating myself on security and privacy protocols. Why did you decide to pursue your... Read more →

HCISPP Spotlight: Bryan Bell

Name: Bryan Bell Title: Senior Director, P2PE Employer: Coalfire Systems, Inc. Location: Alpharetta, Georgia, U.S.A. Education: Clayton State University, Computer Science Years in IT: 25+ Years in cybersecurity and/or privacy: 12+ Cybersecurity certifications: HCISPP, HITRUST CSF, ISO 27001 Lead Auditor, CFCP, PCI QSA (PA-P2PE) How did you decide upon a career in healthcare security and/or privacy? I’ve enjoyed working within information technology since high school and through college where I was developing applications and learning systems design and networking. I’ve always been drawn to healthcare security, because there is a continuing dilemma from healthcare providers to balance technology and information... Read more →

Associate of (ISC)² Spotlight: Rachel Phillips

Name: Rachel Phillips, PMP, Assoc. (ISC)² (ISC)² Exam(s) Passed: CISSP Title: Cybersecurity Analyst Location: Seattle, WA, U.S.A. Education: M.S. Information Technology (Security and Assurance) and B.S. Business Administration (New Media and Internet), Kaplan University Years in IT: 10 Years in Cybersecurity: 3 Cybersecurity Certifications: Associate of (ISC)² Rachel Phillips, PMP, Assoc. (ISC)² is an influencer and sought-after contributor for her views and leadership in technology and security. She holds a Master’s in IT with emphasis in Information Security and Assurance, and a Bachelor’s in Business Administration from Kaplan University. As a cybersecurity analyst, she provides oversight and assurance of meeting... Read more →

SSCP Spotlight: Wai Sheng Cheng

Name: Wai Sheng Cheng Title: Security Analyst Employer: Cboe Global Markets Location: Kansas, U.S.A. Degree: Master of Science, Information Systems Engineering, Johns Hopkins University Years in IT: 6 Years in information security: 3 Cybersecurity certifications: SSCP How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? I decided on a career in cybersecurity when my email account was first compromised in 2011. I learned about this when my friends and family called to ask if I had sent out emails asking for money. As an engineer-in-training, I was curious to know why and how this had happened. It was through this... Read more →

SSCP Spotlight: Timothy Meryweather

Name: Timothy Meryweather Title: IT Auditor Location: Greater Los Angeles Area Degree: Bachelor of Science Years in information security: 6 Cybersecurity certifications: SSCP (ISACA: CISA, CRISC) How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? Our Audit Department’s Senior IT Auditor needed help and I was transferred from Background Licensing. Right place, right time. I possess a guardian spirit and have mostly worked in similar areas of employment: U.S. Marine, Deputy Sheriff, Police Officer, Private Security/Life Safety, casino surveillance, background licensing investigator. With my investigative training background, it was a natural migration into auditing the cybersecurity of information technology. Why... Read more →

SSCP Spotlight: Simon Morgan

Name: Simon Morgan Title: IT Systems Engineer Employer: LSA Systems Ltd. Location: Billericay, U.K. Degree: HND in Computing Years in IT: 15 Years in information security: 3 Cybersecurity certifications: SSCP How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? Information security has always interested me. The ever-present risks that business and individuals face from cyber-attacks and threat actors drives me to try and help protect them to the best of my ability. It is an exciting field to be in that has new and interesting challenges on a daily basis. Not only this, but going forward in my career I... Read more →

CCSP Spotlight: David Schneider

Name: David Schneider Title: Senior Cyber Security Threat Engineer Employer: Garmin International Location: Olathe, KS, U.S.A. Degree: BA, BS, MS Years in IT: 20 Years in cybersecurity: 12 Cybersecurity certifications: CCSP, CISSP, CISM, CISA, GWAPT, CIS LI How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? I became interested in cybersecurity while doing software development. When working as a developer, I started becoming interested in secure coding methods and what I could do to make what I was working on more secure from both a technical and end-user perspectives. I started enjoying other aspects around information security and felt that... Read more →

SSCP Spotlight: Sohail Awad

Name: Sohail Awad Title: Engineer Employer: Freelancer Location: U.K. Degree: Master of Science in Computer Security Years in IT: 16 Years in information security: 12 Cybersecurity certifications: SSCP, CCNA Security, CCNA R/S What security skills and knowledge would you count as relevant to your current role, and ambitions for the future? Every skill or bit of knowledge I gain is relevant to my role as they help me to see the big picture and better tailor the solutions I create and develop. The SSCP, in essence, is designed to deliver that vision. I have found the secure programming techniques, data... Read more →

SSCP Spotlight: Todd Painter

Name: Todd A. Painter Title: Network Engineer Employer: UNG, Inc. Location: Boiling Springs, SC (USA) Years in IT: 7 Years in information security: 3 Cybersecurity certifications: SSCP, Security+, working on CISSP How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? Looking at the current scope of IT, it was apparent to me that the IT security field would have the largest growth in the coming years. With that in mind, I knew that I had a good chance at becoming a valuable asset to any company that needed a security expert, or someone with more of a security mindset rather... Read more →

CISSP Spotlight: James Packer

Name: James Packer Title: Security and Cloud Specialist Employer: Big 4 Firm Location: London, UK Education: Information Technology and Security Years in IT: 10 Years in Cybersecurity: 5 Cybersecurity Certifications: CISSP, CCSP, CIS F ISO27001 How did you get in to a career in cybersecurity? I’d say I’m like countless security professionals out there, I first started in IT and security was just a part of my job, inherent in every role I performed. I started in desktop support, progressing through the service desk lines to a managerial role, before moving in to projects and architecture- “solutionising” as I call... Read more →

CCSP Spotlight: Greg Harris

Name: Greg Harris Title: Senior Security Consultant and Adjunct Professor Employer: Big 4 Firm and Kennesaw State University Location: Alpharetta, Georgia, U.S.A. Degree: MBA, MS in Information Systems, BS in Computer Science & Mathematics Years in IT: 15+ Years in cybersecurity: 13+ Cybersecurity certifications: CISSP, CCSP, CRISC, CISM, CISA, GCFA How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? McKesson Corporation hired me as a Security Infrastructure Engineer through a campus-recruiting program at Kennesaw State University in 2003. My undergraduate degree was a Bachelor of Science with a double major in Computer Science and Mathematics. With my Navy Electronic Warfare... Read more →

CISSP Spotlight: Richard Carpenter

Name: Richard Carpenter Title: Information Security Manager Employer: Global Media and Entertainment Location: Devon, United Kingdom Years in IT: 10 Years in cybersecurity: 7 Cybersecurity certifications: CISSP How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? In my previous role supporting Identity and Access Management, a certain amount of due diligence was required when auditing user accounts, logon usage, permissions and security best practices for Access brokers. This sparked my interest in a cybersecurity practice outside the traditional ‘Security Operations’ role. Why did you get your CISSP®? While reviewing the market for training opportunities to upskill in my new chosen... Read more →

CCSP Spotlight: Mr. Toh Tai Ann

Name: Mr. Toh Tai Ann Title: Principal Trainer and Consultant Employer: Solution of Solutions LLP Location: Singapore Degree: Bachelor of Electrical Engineering (Hons) University of Western Australia Years in IT: 31 years Years in cybersecurity: 10 years Cybersecurity certifications: Certified Information System Security Professional (CISSP) Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP) The Open Group Architecture Framework (TOGAF) How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? I have been an Information Technology professional for more than 25 years and in the Information Technology sector for 30+ years. In these 30+ years I have seen the transformation of IT from a mainframe/minicomputer... Read more →

CISSP Spotlight: Mark A. Singer

Name: Mark A. Singer Title: Principal Software Engineer Employer: DoD Sub-Contractor Location: Indianapolis, IN Education: Business Management Years in IT: 19 Years in cybersecurity: 12 Cybersecurity certifications: CISSP How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? Evolution. I stumbled into computers when I served in the U.S. Navy from 1985 to 1989 when PCs with 8086 processors were common. When I got out of the service, I was able to get a job working for Naval Avionics in Indianapolis and was placed in a role where I was doing local computer support on tempest computers (386, 486, & 486DX... Read more →

SSCP Spotlight: Ajet Ibraimoski

Name: Ajet Ibraimoski Title: System/Network Administrator Employer: PBS Systems Inc. Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada Degree: MSc. in Computer Networks and e-Technologies; B.Sc. in Informatics and computer engineering Years in IT: 9 Years in information security: 5 Cybersecurity certifications: SSCP, CEH, Security+, Cybersecurity: Technology, Application and Policy – MIT, Information Security Foundation based on ISO/IEC 27002 How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? Security has always been my passion. Information security blogs and magazines kept me awake at night during my university years. After graduation, I had the chance to work in various positions and industries that presented unique... Read more →

CCSP Spotlight: Guy Bertrand Kamga

Name: Guy Bertrand Kamga Title: Senior Security Analyst Employer: Nokia Location: Paris, France Degree: Master in Computer Science Engineering Years in IT: 14 Years in cybersecurity: 7 Cybersecurity certifications: CISSP, CCSK, CCSP How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? I decided to focus in cybersecurity when I realized that due to the rapid development of new technologies (e.g. social networks, cloud) and the proliferation of mobile devices, it will be more and more challenging to efficiently protect personal data and other sensitive information. Why did you get your CCSP®? I decided to take the CCSP exam to challenge... Read more →

SSCP Spotlight: Adam Gorecki

Name: Adam Gorecki Title: System Administrator/Information Security Analyst Employer: Mountain View County Location: Didsbury, Alberta, Canada Years in IT: Over 10 years Years in information security: 1 Cybersecurity certifications: SSCP How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? Information security has been something that has always interested me. It has been at the forefront of my mind during my career as a network analyst and a system administrator. When the opportunity arose for me to take on an information security analyst role, I jumped at it. Why did you get your SSCP®? I wanted to get a designation that... Read more →

CISSP Spotlight: Shashana Campbell

Name: Shashana Campbell Title: Manager, Cyber Risk Advisory Employer: Grant Thornton LLP Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A. Education: Master of Science in Information Systems from Drexel University and Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems from Pennsylvania State University Years in IT: 7 Years in information security: 7 Cybersecurity certifications: CISSP, CISA How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? I began my career in risk consulting, providing IT Auditing and Advisory service. I think once you build a foundation in understanding, assessing and implementing IT security controls, the next step is learning how to further strengthen those controls and... Read more →

CISSP Spotlight: Uzoma Nwankwo

Name: Uzoma Nwankwo Title: Information Systems Security Officer Employer: Booz Allen Hamilton Location: National Business Park, Maryland, U.S.A. Education: MBA, BS in Computer Information Systems Years in IT: 12 Years in cybersecurity: 7 Cybersecurity certifications: CISSP, Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), Comptia Security +, Project Management Professional (PMP) How did you decide upon a career in cybersecurity? I began my career as a systems administrator, supporting a project for a large government agency. When that project ended, I was presented with an opportunity to help another government agency with cybersecurity services in locations throughout the country. I travelled, met new people... Read more →