Cybersecurity Speaker,
Digital Investigator,
Published Author

One afternoon, I drafted an email to the CEO and CISO of a major airline company. The title read – URGENT – Data breach in your network. During our phone conversation later that evening, I proceeded to tell the security admin that I received word from a dark web contact that sensitive data from their network was about to go on sale later that week. Working in tandem with my dark web contacts and the company’s security team, we were able to identify the hacker’s position within their network, turned off their access, and closed the vulnerabilities that allowed them to gain access.

This is the kind of thing I do day in and day out, and I love my job.

My Roots

It all started around the age of 10 when my dad brought home our first computer. I had no idea what to do with it, but it was mesmerizing. I don’t know what compelled me to want to figure it out – it just felt really interesting, so I sat down in front of the DOS terminal and hacked away at it until I figured it out. I have been hacking my way around computer systems ever since.

I love solving problems, so figuring out my way through and around systems always came naturally to me. The more complex the problem, the greater the reward I feel when solving it.

When a complex puzzle catches my attention, I have a hard time pulling away from it. I have been known to spend 18 hours straight in front of a computer, hacking away at some code or problem until I find my solution.

Obsessive? Sure, but I don’t care.

I think this is what makes me a great hacker and investigator – I am unwilling to accept statements like “it can’t be done”, and “impossible”. When people tell me that something can’t be done, my brain immediately goes into overdrive and I start figuring out a way to do it.

It is a characteristic I feel separates me from most, and the driving factor behind why I have been able to accomplish so much from so little.

Career and Media

After spending nearly, a decade working on securing systems for the U.S. Department of, I have found myself as a go-to media expert on cyber-related controversies. I was first recognized by the national news media following my discovery of information on tape-backups containing data relevant to the Lois Lerner IRS scandal.

Now, you can find my regular appearance on global news networks including Fox News, CNBC, ABC, CNN, and Fox Business, where I enjoy participating in on-air discussions about major corporate data breaches, cyber law and legislation, airline and automobile hacking, and cyber-related scandals.

My Company, Night Lion Security

In 2014, I launched my company, Night Lion Security. My unconventional approach to identifying risk and solving complex problems, combined with an ability to deliver messages in a way that resonates with executive business leaders, has allowed me to grow my company and stand out in an over-saturated industry.

I was honored when John McAfee, a world-renowned cyber security expert and CEO of McAfee Global Technologies (MGT), announced my appointment to MGT’s prestigious Hacker Advisory Board.

PhD Dissertation

My passion for cybersecurity bled over to my Ph.D. capstone project, where I chose to do a dissertation on the NIST Cybersecurity Framework. As of today, I am the only person to have written an academic paper on the security framework mandated by President Trump’s ‘Cyber Executive Order’ in May 2018.

Hunting Cyber Criminals

My first published book, “Hunting Cyber Criminals” will be available on December 1.

My latest major cybercriminal investigation project has been unfolding over the past 18 months and will play a big part in my upcoming book on Digital Investigations and Intelligence Gathering.

The Dark Web

In addition to running a security consulting firm dedicated to providing top-tier ethical hacking and risk management services, I spend most of my free time hunting for data breaches and infiltrating private criminal circles on the dark web.

Finding and hunting cybercriminals is my passion. Being able to unravel the criminal master minds behind their hundreds of layers of obfuscation is like a giant puzzle.

It is by far the most rewarding challenge I have ever come across, and I could never have imagined that powering up that first computer at ten years old would lead me here!

And while data breaches are never a fun circumstance for the companies being notified, I promise if you ever unexpectedly hear from me, I will leave you in a much position than where I found you.