ABOUT THE FOUNDER
Peter Liebert
SC Magazine 2019 Chief Security Officer of the year and former State of California Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), is a security visionary who has tackled some of the most complex security issues imaginable during his 19 years of leadership experience and 10 years of cybersecurity experience in private, Federal, and State Government organizations. An accomplished cybersecurity expert with deep technical knowledge and a well-regarded public speaker, Peter is well versed in translating complex security risks and issues to broader audiences as well as leadership bodies such as Boards of Directors. Some accomplishments include developing guidelines for, and partnering with, the State of California’s first successful DevOps team, building an award-winning 24/7 Security Operations Center from the ground up, and help drive the secure migration of hundreds of workloads to the cloud.
EDUCATION
National Defense University, MS, Cybersecurity
Harvard Kennedy School, Master, Public Administration
Cranfield University, MSc International Security
United States Naval Academy, BS, English
CERTIFICATIONS
Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)
Global Information Assurance Security Leadership Certification (GSLC), SANS
Global Information Assurance Information Security Professional (GISP), SANS
Network+ (N+), CompTIA
Information Security Project Manager Certification (GCPM), SANS
Certified Ethical Hacker (CEHv7), EC-COUNCIL
Certificate in Legislative Studies, Georgetown University
Certificate in Cybersecurity for Industrial Control Systems, DHS ICS-CERT
CNSS 4015, CNSS 4012, CNSS 4016
NSTISSI-4011, NSTISSI-4015
Additional military certifications available upon request
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION
CSO of the Year Finalist (SC Media), 2019
2018 RSAM Impact Award Winner, 2018
NASCIO CIO Special Recognition Award Finalist, 2018
State Cybersecurity Leader, Statescoop 2017
Senior Global Fellow, Project for the Study of 21st Century (PS21), 2014
Truman National Security Project Defense Council, 2013
Chief of Naval Operations Presidential Management Fellow, 2011
LECTURES AND RESEARCH EVENTS
Topic: Event Principle RAND 360 Cybersecurity 2018
Topic: Securing California; Cyber Initiative Seminar, Stanford University, 2017
Topic: Secure Coding, Secure OS, and Secure Networks; University of South Dakota, 2014
Topic: Cybersecurity 101 and the American Government: The Bottom Line; University of South Dakota, 2014
Topic: Cybersecurity 101; Truman National Security Project, 2015 - 2016
Topic: Information Technology Basics and Policy Pitfalls; OSD Cyber
Topic: Lessons Learned from the Front - A discussion on leadership; USNA SPPA, 2011
PUBLICATIONS
An Analysis of American State-IT and Cybersecurity Governance Structures and their Impact on Cybersecurity Performance, National Defense University, April 2019
Keeping the Lights On: The Critical Role of U.S. States in Electrical Sector Cybersecurity,
Truman Center Publishing, April 2017
CONFERENCE and PUBLIC APPEARANCES
Cyber Insiders, iHeart Radio, 2019
Topic: California's Cyber Economy
Security Weekly, Episode 628, 2019
Topic: The Next Generation of SOCs - Peter Liebert - PSW #628
Topic: CISO/CIO Perspectives 2019
Topic: Laboratories of Cyber-Innovation States Leading the Way
California Cybersecurity Education Summit, 2018
Topic: Alleviate C-Suite Cyber Concerns with Data Analytics
Topic: Security & Privacy compliance automation using Enterprise Risk and Compliance
Topic: Who’s Hacking You?
National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), 2018
Topic: Cybersecurity Maturity, Comparing and Prioritizing Agency Level Efforts
RSA Public Sector Conference, 2018
Topic: Government and the CSF
UC Riverside Cybersecurity Summit, 2018
Topic: Cybersecurity for the State of California, One Team, One Fight
National Association Of Procurement Officers (NASPO) Conference, 2018
Topic: Cybersecurity and You how Blockchain and Technology will revolutionize cybersecurity..or will it
California County Information Services Directors Association (CCISDA) Fall 2018
Topic: Information Security
California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce, 2018
Topic: Are You Prepared for the Cybersecurity Challenge?
State of California Cybersecurity Education Summit, Sacramento Ca (2017)
Topic: Finding the Needle in the Haystack
State of California Cybersecurity Education Summit, Sacramento Ca (2017)
Topic: Securing California and Public-Sector Governments
Gartner Symposium / ITxpo, Orlando FL (2017)
Topic: Accelerating State Cyber Security in the 21st Century
Billington Cybersecurity Summit, Washington DC (2017)
Topic: Your Deep Dive in the NIST Framework; Best Practices and Lessons Learned
RSA Security Conference, San Francisco Ca (2017)
Topic: Continuous Monitoring: Best Practices from the Federal & State Government
Winter ICT Instructor Conference, San Jose Ca (2017)
Topic: Keynote – The Challenges of Cybersecurity Education and State Employment
Blackhat, Las Vegas (2016)
Topic: Leveraging the FaaS Platform to combat IT threats to OT networks
PRESS
AI Based Defensive Systems Impact on Cybercriminal Strategy, by Carmen Marsh,
(November 2019
California CISO Peter Liebert announces resignation, by Colin Wood, (StateScoop),
(May 2019)
California CISO Peter Liebert leaving state government, by Dennis Noone, (Govtech)
(May 2019)
State CISO Gets Specific About Security Upgrades, by Kayla Nick-Kearney, (Techwire),
(October 2018)
White-Hat Workshop Shows Risks of Personal Data, by Kayla Nick-Kearney (Techwire),
(October 2018)
Analysis: Why You Need the Cybersecurity Framework, by Dan Lorhmann (Techwire)
(May 2018)
Applications Open for New State IT Academy, by Dennis Noone (Techwire), (May 2018)
State to Grade Departments’ Cyberdefenses, by Dennis Noone (Techwire)
(March 2018)
California announces cybersecurity maturity metrics for ‘objective’ agency comparison,
by Colin Wood (Statescoop), (March 2018)
State Cybersecurity Chiefs Report ‘Rapid Improvement,’ by Samantha Young
(Techwire), (March 2018)
AI Hearing: Encourage Research, Beware Pitfalls, by Samantha Young (Techwire),
(March 2018)
California’s New Model for Measuring Cyber Prepardness May Work for Private Sector, by Jeff Stone (The Wall Street Journal), (March 2018)
State’s IT Security Chiefs to Face Lawmakers, by Samantha Young (Techwire),
(February 2018)
With Vision 2020 plan, California includes cybersecurity in ‘everything’ (Statescoop),
(2018)
California a Top Target for Cybercrime Report Says, by Jason Shueh (Statescoop),
(January 2018)
Exclusive: Vendors Pleased, Reassured After CDT Presentation, by Dennis Noone and
Kayla Nick-Kearney, (Oct 2017)
California’s Department of Technology Revamps Cloud Strategies, Security Operations,
by Kayla Nick-Kearney (Techwire), (May 2017)
State CISO: Security Operations Center Becoming ‘Gatekeeper’, by Samantha Young (Techwire), (November 2017)
Televised Interview, by John Thomas Flynn (Tech Leader TV) (February 2017)
State Security Scorecard Astounding Improvements Labeled a Team Effort,
by John Thomas Flynn, (Tech Leader TV), (October 2017)
Statewide approach to cybersecurity monitoring in California brings better visibility,
faster threat detection,
by Jason Shueh (StateScoop) (October 2017)
California Launches Cybersecurity Center to Stay Ahead of Threats, by Juliet Wagenen
(StateTech) (October 2017)
California Poised to Improve Cybersecurity, by Liam Crawford (ITI)
(March 2017)
Public Sector ‘outgunned’ on ransomware, experts say, by Jake Williams (StateScoop)
(February 2017)
California names Peter Liebert new chief information security officer, by Colin Wood
(Statescoop) (November 2016)
Affiliations
International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium (ISC2)
Program Management Institute (PMI)
Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA)
Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA)
Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW)
Military Officers Association of America (MOAA)
Navy Leauge of the United States
United States Navy Alumni Association