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Mike Wilkes

Director of Cyber Operations, The Security Agency

Mike Wilkes is a security professional who has built, transformed and protected companies such as Lark Health, SecurityScorecard, ASCAP, Marvel Entertainment, AQR Capital, ING Bank, KLM, Rabobank, CME Group, Sony, Macy's, Blockbuster, Starbucks, Harley-Davidson, Nike and dozens of other prominent and well-known Internet brands.

Nominated as a member of the World Economic Forum in 2020 for being a technology pioneer, he has served on their working groups for cyber resilience in the oil and gas industry as well as quantum security. He started his career with the US Department of Education in the far western laboratory, supporting California, Arizona, Nevada and Utah K-12 public education.

A Stanford graduate and author of the book “Cisco Internet Applications and Solutions” for Cisco Press in 2002, he is a featured speaker at technology conferences for Black Hat, Gartner, GovWare, and SANS and is an adjunct professor at NYU teaching cybersecurity courses for the Cyber Fellows (returning adult professionals), graduate students and the newly created certification programs for CIOs and CISOs. Recent public sector engagement has included serving on the Area Maritime Security Committee (AMSC) for Sector New York with the United States Coast Guard and authoring industry benchmark reports and whitepapers for the White House on third-party risk management.

An avid jazz fan and musician, he is also on the board of trustees for the National Jazz Museum in Harlem serving as the chair of the new media committee.

Education

  • M.Ed., Stanford University
  • B.A., University of Wisconsin - Madison