Speakers

Mark Bentkower is a data protection and cybersecurity expert with over two decades of experience, currently serving as Principal Technologist, Americas, at Veeam Software. He helps organizations enhance data resiliency, security, and compliance in an evolving threat landscape.

With international experience, including time with Veeam in Singapore, Mark has a broad perspective on IT challenges. He has played a key role in modernizing data protection strategies across Asia-Pacific and brings deep expertise in cloud and hybrid environments to help organizations implement resilient, scalable, and secure data solutions.

As an active thought leader, Mark frequently speaks at industry conferences and roundtables. He recently participated in a discussion on ransomware resilience, addressing challenges like service-level agreements and recovery objectives in multi-vendor environments.

A Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Mark is committed to advancing cybersecurity and data resiliency best practices. He lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and enjoys traveling, live music, and theater.

Greg started at Pure in 2024 as a Principal Technologist covering the Federal space, his most exciting stretch of his 15 year IT journey to date. With a background in Infrastructure, Programming and Network Security, Greg started his IT career as a contractor in Hampton Roads, VA for nearly every branch of the Department of Defense back in 2007. Over the next 10 years, the transition to Enterprise IT in the public and private sector started with a series of experiences in post and pre-sales in EMC Federal, as the Data Center Lead in the VAR space, and most recently as a Field CTO at Dell Technologies where he helped in the global effort of solutioning, execution, design and enablement on strategic opportunities as well as being a Global Lead for software defined storage in public cloud. Greg lives in Virginia with his wife Michelle, their son, as well as two elder dogs. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling with his wife, reading, the occasional game and most recently dipping a toe into blacksmithing.

Erin supports Google Cloud’s government clients throughout their cloud transformation journeys and focuses on cybersecurity, regulatory and privacy compliance, risk management, and resilience.

Before joining Google, Erin was SVP at Mandiant working with customers and partners to modernize cyber security and defense. Prior to that role, Erin was a Senior Executive leader in the FBI orchestrating world-wide cyber operations countering nation state adversaries. She, also, led several of the FBI’s digital transformations. Erin was the second Director of the U.S. Government’s Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center at ODNI and served as the advisory board’s chair over the seven US federal cyber centers. Over her extensive career, Erin developed national security operations, government strategies, and policies to counter threats from nation-state actors, criminals, and terrorists. Erin is an attorney and enjoys her board advisory roles. 

Mr. Patrick Johnson serves as the Director, Workforce Innovation Directorate, in the Office of the Deputy CIO for Resources and Analysis, Department of Defense (DoD) CIO.

In his role as Director Mr. Johnson leads a dynamic team responsible for the Directorate’s expansive workforce management portfolio and program development supporting the broader talent management lifecycle for the Department’s cyberspace workforce. Directorate initiatives include the DoD Cyber Workforce Framework (DCWF) expansion, training and education program development (Cyber Scholarship, Cyber Exchange, etc), Cyber Workforce Management Board (CWMB) facilitation, Cyber Excepted Service (CES) Personnel System, and the 8140 policy series implementation which establish enterprise baseline standards and requirements according to DCWF work role(s). At the OSD-level the Cyber Workforce Directorates role is to leverage authorities and provide Department stakeholders with policy, programs, and tools to effectively recruit and retain a highly skilled cyberspace workforce.

Mr. Johnson previously served as the Chief, DoD Cyber Excepted Service where his leadership played a pivotal role in the development and implementation of the Cyber Excepted Service Personnel System, and ultimately mission expansion into today’s Cyber Workforce Directorate.

Mr. Johnson entered federal service in 2011, following more than 24 years of service in the U.S. Army. Prior to becoming the Director for the DoD CIO Cyber Workforce, Mr. Johnson served in a variety of positions in the Department, rising to his position today from his first role as Intelligence Combat Developer, with the U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM). In his expansive civil service career Mr. Johnson has also served as Deputy Director, Military Personnel DLA; Cyber Integrator, OSD Personnel and Readiness (P&R); Senior Program Manager (Retention), Deputy Chief of Staff Army G-1;

Mr. Johnson spent his early career in the U.S. Army, serving as a Military Policeman, Protective Service Agent, Military Police Investigator and Career Counselor culminating in his role as Special Liaison with U.S. Army Intelligence Support Activity within the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC).

Mr. Johnson in his free time, he is a highly skilled wood carver and machinist. A BAMA native at heart, Mr. Johnson temporarily resides in the state of Virginia with his wife of 34 years.

Josh Kuntz is the CISO for TDLR and a recognized cybersecurity expert with 30 years of public service - 6 years USMC & 24 years with 7 Texas state agencies. He has extensive experience in physical/information security, IT management, project procurement, project management, contract management, personnel management and risk management. His career includes 8 years at the TXDPS overseeing the TLETS satellite network and 3 years at TYC as the 1st ISO leading the security program during its merger with the Juvenile Probation Dept. He served 7 years at the TXDMV as their 1st ISO where he established a public-private partnership for cybersecurity training certifying 90 state employees, with added roles as CIO and PMO Director. As CISO of TWC he built a robust cybersecurity team, launched an apprenticeship program & advised 28 workforce boards in Texas. He initiated a CISO Mentorship Program to foster future security leaders. Has his degree in criminal justice, CISSP certification & was the 2024 Austin ISSA CISO of the Year.

Doug Levin is co-founder and national director of the K12 Security Information eXchange (K12 SIX), a national non-profit dedicated solely to helping schools protect themselves from emerging cybersecurity threats. He also is the creator of the K-12 Cyber Incident Map, the most comprehensive database of publicly-disclosed cybersecurity incidents in K-12 education, which serves as the foundation for the ‘State of K-12 Cybersecurity Year in Review’ annual report series. He served on the U.S. Department of Education K-12 Cybersecurity Government Coordinating Council (GCC) and advised CISA on K-12 cybersecurity trends and issues. 

Mr. Levin has been engaged in education and technology policy issues for over three decades – in a variety of roles. From 2009-15, he served as executive director of the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA). Previously, Mr. Levin held positions with the American Institutes for Research, the National Cable & Telecommunications Association, and the National Association of State Boards of Education. He has been recognized as one of the most influential people in education technology and his research and views are routinely sought out by the media. He is a graduate of William & Mary and earned a master’s degree in Sociology from The George Washington University.

Chris Richardson has worked in the Anti-Fraud and Information Security Fields for over 15 years. Starting with IID (Internet Identity) in 2005, Chris built and managed the 24x7 External Threat Detection & Mitigation Team, supporting hundreds of customers and working with thousands of web hosts and registrars. Chris was part of the core leadership team that led IID’s evolution into a leading distributor of timely, accurate, contextualized threat intelligence feeds that enhance existing Security deployments, and Chris has participated in several cross-sector working groups. In 2016, IID joined Infoblox to create holistic core network security solutions for customers in a variety of sectors.

A respected thought leader in the Federal IT community, Tom Suder is Founder and President of the Advanced Technology Academic Research Center (ATARC).

Tom is a two-time winner of a Federal 100 Award, a prestigious honor that recognizes government and industry leaders who played pivotal roles in Federal IT and made a made a difference in the way technology transformed the government.

He is the co-author of over 25 White Papers that were jointly published by MITRE and ATARC following collaboration sessions during the ATARC Federal IT Summit Series. Topics of these educational symposiums include Mobile Technology, Cloud & Data Center, Data & Analytics, DevOps, Cybersecurity, Health IT, Network Transformation and the Internet of Things.

Tom is also the Founder & President of Apcerto, a mobile DevSecOps company, and he serves on a variety of technology advisory boards, including the Professional Science Master’s Advisory Board, which is a part of the Telecommunications Management graduate program at the University of Maryland University College (UMUC).

Melissa S. Vice, Director of the Vulnerability Disclosure Program (VDP) at the Department of Defense (DoD) Cyber Crime Center (DC3), Linthicum, MD.

The DOD VDP, located at the DoD Cyber Crime Center (DC3) an Air Force Field Operating Agency (FOA), was established in 2016 by the Secretary of Defense to strengthen the security of the DoD Information Network (DoDIN) by providing an additional layer to the defense-in-depth cybersecurity strategy. The DOD VDP mission is to function as the single focal point for receiving vulnerability reportsand interacting with crowd-sourced cybersecurity researchers supporting the Joint Forces Headquarters DODIN (JFHQ-DODIN) and U.S. Cyber Command (USCC).

Ms. Vice has more than 35 years experience working in the Information Technology and Cybersecurity fields, 15 years serving the DOD / AF. Prior to DC3, Vice served at the Pentagon as the Chief Technology Officer of the Business Mission Area (BMA) for The Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force, Management (SAF/MG) / Deputy Chief Management Office (DCMO) tasked with road-mapping 400+ information systems to the cloud with a portfolio value of $938M. In the private sector, Ms. Vice worked for General Electric (GE) Aviation Division, as a global database developer and administrator for all commercial and military aircraft engine repairs worldwide protecting export control. While at GE among the world’s most talented aeronautical engineers, Vice had the thrill of a lifetime piloting her first 360 in a restored 1957 Stearman.

David DiMolfetta covers cybersecurity for Nextgov/FCW. Previously, he researched The Cybersecurity 202 and The Technology 202 newsletters at The Washington Post and covered AI, cybersecurity and technology policy for S&P Global Market Intelligence. He holds a BBA from The George Washington University and an MS from Georgetown University.

Jessie Bur is Nextgov/FCW's executive editor. She has been covering technology and government for the past eight years and graduated from James Madison University.

Chris Teale is the managing editor for Route Fifty, where he covers state and local government technology.