Episode 25

Alex Rhodes, CISSP - Cybersecurity Research Engineer and Space Cyber Affluent; Youth and Community Engagement Director

Published on: 21st April, 2022

Alex Rhodes is a Cybersecurity Research Engineer and Space Cyber affluent. He also serves on the board of advisors and as Youth and Community Director for Whole Cyber Human Initiative. He's retired from the U.S. Army in 2018 as the Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Digital Forensics Research Branch for the Army Criminal Investigative Division, (USACIDC). In addition to conducting digital forensics and felony investigations for the Army, he spent 5 years as a Russian Linguist and about 2 years as a Satellite Communications Specialist.

After retiring from the Army, he worked for Lockheed Martin as a cybersecurity professional where he was awarded with the 2020 Technical Innovation Award for a classified cybersecurity project.

Alex’s next assignment was with Peraton where he used his previous experience to assist with completely rebuilding and revamping the cybersecurity program for the 62nd Cybersecurity Squadron, U.S. Space Force. While working on an assignment to help secure satellite platforms, Alex wrote a research paper highlighting the vulnerabilities inherent within the Telemetry and Commanding (TT&C) system of a satellite.

Currently, Alex is working as an Information Systems Security Engineer and cybersecurity researcher for Stephenson Technologies Corporation. He has co-authored a research paper into the HiveNightmare vulnerability with Paul Cummings. Currently, he is researching vulnerabilities inherent in a system of systems and critical infrastructure systems.

Alex has numerous military and civilian awards over the last 20 years. He has an Associates in Russian Language from the Defense Language Institute, Foreign Language Center, a Bachelor’s of Science in Russian Studies from Excelsior College, and a Masters of Science in Cybersecurity with a focus in Information Assurance from Excelsior College.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexrhodes79/

Whole Cyber Human Initiative Non-Profit: https://www.wholecyberhumaninitiative.org/

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About the Podcast

The CISO Diaries

The path to cybersecurity leadership is not a direct route and it's those divergent routes that create the amazing stories and histories of leaders who are driving security to keep businesses and people safe.

We’re Leah McLean and Syya Yasotornrat and we intend to give CISOs and cybersecurity professionals a place to be their authentic selves. These are the unedited stories told of how they got into cybersecurity, the real struggles they’ve persevered through, personal anecdotes that make them tick, and leadership advice based on experiences.

We aren't the kind of cybersecurity podcasts that focuses on the technologies, or recent incidents. We are the podcast that focuses on the people behind the headlines and the incredible diversity of experiences and backgrounds. (And it's not lost on us that we're two awesome female hosts)!

Let's face it: we are a cybersecurity tribe and we need all hands on deck!

We hope you enjoy our CISO diary entries.

After all, we're only human, right?

Special thanks to our sponsor, Cyber Future Foundation, a non-profit global cybersecurity executive leadership community, where leaders, thinkers, and futurists discuss and develop actionable guidance and frameworks for a trusted and safer world.

About your hosts

Syya Yasotornrat

Syya is a tenured tech sales professional with her time at SonicWALL and Hewlett Packard (HPE) with some hospitality at the Walt Disney Company and IT recruitment experience in the mix. She is currently a podcast strategist and consultant, helping others to bring out their voice and legacy through podcasting. She loves to learn and talk about anything, so feel free to reach out!

Leah McLean

Leah is Vice President, Cybersecurity Specialist at Mastercard. She is focused on implementing strategy and programs to evolve cybersecurity risk management approaches and cybersecurity awareness and training. She actively contributes in community working groups to advance cybersecurity risk management and third-party risk. Leah is also a mentor to candidates breaking into cybersecurity careers, and collaborates with employers to rethink their workforce and hiring strategies.
Leah is a co-founder at Whole Cyber Human Initiative, a non-profit focused on redefining how we identify, train, equip, advance knowledge, and build workforce development within IT and Cybersecurity. She also volunteers for Cyber Future Foundation, a non-profit driving workforce development initiatives and private and public sector collaboration.
Previously Leah held senior level roles as a cybersecurity practitioner at Armor, a cloud security company protecting data for SMB and mid-market customers, Apstra (acquired by Juniper Networks), A10 Networks and Cisco Systems. Leah serves on the Board of Advisors for Cloud Defense, Inc., a breach visibility cloud security startup and is on the board for the Cloud Security Alliance North Texas Chapter.
Leah holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, with an emphasis in International Relations from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She is an active outdoor junkie always chasing adventure.