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18 confirmed
Principal, Cyber Threat Strategy · Bell Canada
Adam Janzen is a seasoned cybersecurity leader with deep experience in cyber operations, threat hunting, and incident response. In his current role, Adam defines and drives threat strategy, while influencing security roadmap and investment decisions. Drawing on a background in security operations, penetration testing, and solution architectures, he brings a pragmatic, hands-on approach to reducing risk and maturing cyber defenses in alignment with business strategy.
Amit brings a distinguished portfolio of experience shaped through engagements with leading institutions and global organizations, including NASA, York University, IBM, the Toronto Maple Leafs, American Express, HTS, and Lakefield College. His work reflects a deep commitment to advancing technology, innovation, and strategic leadership across diverse sectors. Amit is an active contributor to several prominent global technology and education networks, including SiberX, Toronto CIO, CISO Society, RSAC, DEF CON, BlackHat, CAIS, ATLIS, NAIS, NBOA, DSG Data Science, CIS Ontario, and MaRS Discovery District. Through these engagements, he remains closely connected to emerging trends and global conversations shaping the future of technology and digital transformation. Amit brings a strategic, globally informed perspective to complex challenges, combining technical depth with institutional insight to drive meaningful impact across organizations and industries.
Chair · Operation Defend the North
Ali has over 15 years of experience in developing and leading teams at various stages of the IT development lifecycle. He spearheaded the growth of Durham College’s Cybersecurity Innovation Center along with their AI and Cybersecurity labs – he led the deployment of applications and infrastructure in line with ISO 27001 and NIST frameworks and prepared processes for SOC 2 level clearances. Ali held senior roles at the Ontario Research and Innovation Optical Network ( ORION ) in projects related to remote connectivity, the implementation of technical training, enhancing access to critical applications and more. Leading teams of up to 65 staff members, Ali has demonstrated leadership in the cyber domain and has established a reputation province wide for his expertise and initiative. Ali is the host of various tech shows including Power Hour, a panelist for numerous forums including the CISO Forum Canada and a highly acknowledged lecturer at many institutions across Canada. As well as being a seasoned member of the Cyber community, Ali has led the deployment of tabletop exercises for the province of Ontario and is consistently invited to deliver cyber training programs across various sectors. Most recently, Ali was retained to lead the cyber training division of the Youth Employment Services and lead programming to train and enhance skillsets of learners in cyber. Along with pursuing his PhD, Ali enjoys lecturing at related courses at Seneca College, Georgian College, Toronto School of Management, University of Fredericton, and Algoma University to name a few.
IT & Communications Director · Hulse, Playfair & McGarry Inc
Communications & Cybersecurity Professional | Digital Marketer | Certified ILSAT Translator | Community Advocate At the core of my work is building trust. With more than 20 years of experience at the intersection of communications, marketing, cybersecurity, and project management, I work where strategy meets execution — and where reputation, technology, and human connection meet. I hold a BA in Communications from Carleton University and earned my Marketing Certification alongside an Alma Cum Laude distinction from the Richard Robinson Academy. I’m certified in Cybersecurity, giving me a practical understanding of both communication strategy and the real risks organizations are navigating today. I am also a Certified ILSAT Translator (English–Spanish / Spanish–English), working with Immigrant Women's Services Ottawa. Supporting newcomer women in my community is deeply personal to me — it reflects my belief in being my sister’s keeper and using my skills in service of others. My career began in the fast-paced world of hospitality and live events, where I led large-scale productions — corporate conferences, virtual summits, film festivals, awards galas, and complex initiatives. That environment sharpened my ability to manage pressure, protect brand integrity, and deliver with precision and care. Today, I apply that same discipline to digital strategy, cybersecurity-aware communications, marketing systems, and organizational transformation.
VP of Security and CISO · Fullscript
Esha Mallya is a security executive with 14+ years of experience building and leading global security teams across high-growth startups and public enterprises. She is the VP of Security and CISO at Fullscript, responsible for protecting a healthcare-focused technology platform that serves practitioners and patients across North America, ensuring security enables innovation and growth. Previously, she headed Security and Privacy Engineering at Instacart, overseeing the program for a large multi-sided marketplace. She has also held security leadership roles at Snowflake and DoorDash.
JF Provost's career journey spans from military service to becoming a prominent voice in Canada's cybersecurity landscape. He began his professional path in the Canadian Armed Forces for over 11 years, serving as an Aerospace Control Operator with the Air Force. During that time, JF led secure communication operations, deployed with classified systems, and trained personnel across Canada, gaining deep experience in both leadership and technology in mission-critical environments. After his military career, JF combined his technical expertise and entrepreneurial drive to establish Malvik Security Inc. -- a cybersecurity consultancy focused on safeguarding organizations and training the next generation of cyber professionals. Through strategic partnerships with industry leaders, Malvik Security now delivers cutting-edge solutions blending offensive and defensive methodologies. JF also leads community initiatives, including the Cyber Defenders Village at BSides Ottawa and the Malvik Security Meetup, where he mentors aspiring practitioners and fosters hands-on purple (Red and Blue Team) learning environments. Today, he occasionally teaches at a University and is a board member of the CIO Association of Canada (Ottawa chapter and CISO Division).
fractional (v) CISO · Galbraith & Associates Inc.
Karl provides Cyber and AI Trusted Advisory service spanning envisioning, transform, protect, respond and trust stages of the cyber security lifecycle roadmap. He leverages over 25 years of Security and IT expertise and experience successfully selling, building, delivering, performing audits on commercial and in-house software product solutions in Public sector, Fortune 500 and start up environments. His corporate InfoSec executive, co-founder, technical leadership roles at 10 Ottawa 1.0 startups include Electronic Courthouse, Accentus (acquired by High Road Capital Partners, Nuance), and Interset (formerly Filetrek and GridIron Software, acquired by MicroFocus in 2019) — specialized in Enterprise technology focused on Secure Track and Trace, Security Analytics (UEBA), SOC SIEM/SOAR Dashboard, Zero Trust (ZTA) and Endpoint Agent (EDR) solutions, collectively referred to as Continuous Monitoring. Karl spent 5 years with Canadian Bank Note Corp. where, as acting CISO, Dir IT Security, he oversaw Corporate Information Security Systems technology, product management, development and delivery of Secure Track and Trace solutions. He held previous CISO and ISO audit roles at Canadian Banknote Corp, Bell, PwC, Interset, Accentus, and Electronic Courthouse.
Lionel Akagah, CISSP is a bilingual (English-French) cyber security professional with an international journey spanning across Africa, Europe and North America. With more than 10 years of experience, Lionel has worked with top consulting firms such as PwC, EY, MNP, and Wavestone, and became the inaugural Director of Cybersecurity of a Crown Corporation in Ottawa, Canada. A natural leader with strong interpersonal skills known for strategic input, cross-functional coordination, and initiative leadership, Lionel demonstrates strong knowledge of Canadian and international IT security standards, trends, and system methodologies.
Manager, Information Technology & Systems · Colleges and Institutes Canada
Michael J. Alloy, PMP, is a veteran technology executive with over 30 years of experience leading complex IT infrastructure, security, and digital transformation initiatives across the Public & Private Sector, Defence, Policing, and Higher Education. Michael currently leads the technological vision and strategy for Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan), where he oversees all IT/IS services, including cybersecurity, critical disaster recovery (DR), business continuity planning (BCP), and physical security. His expertise in high-stakes environments is underscored by his past leadership roles at the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and the Department of National Defence, where he managed large-scale infrastructure projects. A specialist in cybersecurity, governance and risk mitigation, Michael has a deep background in emergency management, has authored material in Information and Biological Technology used by global education centres, and has led multi-million-dollar data centre projects and international information exchanges. He has served as Chair of the Canadian College Council of Chief Information Officers (CCCCIO) and Vice-President of the Ontario College and University Telecommunications and Internetworking Association (OCUTINA), and has been a featured speaker at Microsoft's Executive Briefing Center, Comdex, and several Canadian technology conferences.
Chief Innovation Officer · Mirai Security
Over the past two decades, Alex has worked within three mission-critical security operation centres (SOC), including the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics SOC, has established Vancouver’s cyber security community and in 2017 co-founded one of Western Canada’s leading cyber security consultancies. Alex is a community builder. In 2013 he established Vancouver’s cyber security community through the founding of the BSides Vancouver cybersecurity conference. In 2017, frustrated with how broken cyber security consulting had become, forged Mirai Security from within the community. Mirai Security has quickly become the centre for cyber security excellence in Western Canada by attracting cyber security professionals who want to do cyber security better. Alex is an innovator. Over the years, he has focused on balancing risk by pragmatically improving situational awareness and incident response capabilities through business-enabling security architectures. Today, Alex is the Chief Innovation Officer at Mirai Security. Mirai, Japanese for the future, focuses on the “future of cyber risk” by helping enterprises securely digitally transform through innovative governance, secure AI adoption and maturing software development practices. Alex is a thought leader. With a passion for knowledge and giving back to the community, Alex loves public speaking, teaching, contributing to cyber security books, advising higher-education, facilitating immersive tabletop experiences and now documents his experiments and learnings on Substack and Youtube.
Sabrina Lavi is an AppSec professional and global security champions community leader with a focus on the human side of security. Drawing on a background in information security awareness, incident response, and community management -- backed by a graduate degree in communications management -- she brings a people-first approach to building security awareness programs that scale.
Team Lead – Cyber Security & Compliance · Ottawa Police Service
Shahid Shah, CISSP, PMP, is the Team Lead -- Cyber Security & Compliance at the Ottawa Police Service (OPS), where he leads cybersecurity and compliance initiatives that help protect critical law enforcement infrastructure and community data across Ottawa. With 20+ years in enterprise IT, cybersecurity, and digital transformation, he brings a strategic and operational perspective with deep technical fluency -- having led large-scale enterprise programs, advanced Zero Trust and cloud security architectures, and built high-performing teams grounded in collaboration, clarity, and accountability. Shahid also brings hands-on incident readiness and response experience, including collaboration with leading incident response teams such as Microsoft DART and Mandiant. He has completed specialized training in OSINT and cybercrime investigation, and applies those perspectives -- alongside partner collaboration -- to strengthen readiness and resilience during high-impact incidents.
Shruti Mukherjee is a Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) leader with expertise spanning cybersecurity governance, privacy, AI risk, and regulatory compliance. She works closely with regulated organizations to design and operationalize risk frameworks that are practical, defensible, and aligned with evolving regulatory expectations. Shruti is an active contributor to Canada's governance and security community, regularly speaking at industry conferences on topics including AI governance, risk transformation, and modern GRC operating models. She is passionate about bridging strategy and execution -- translating complex regulatory requirements into clear, implementable actions.
Principal Architect, Cybersecurity · TD Bank
Vivienne Suen is a cybersecurity architect with a flair for storytelling and over 15 years' experience advising IT organizations on solutions and strategy. At TD Bank, she leads the Cyber Security Architecture team in designing the bank's cybersecurity controls, guiding technology strategy, and setting architecture vision to secure our future. A featured speaker at numerous conferences and user groups, she thrives on demystifying the complexities of cybersecurity and designing practical solutions to meet security needs and standards. Vivienne lives in Montreal with her husband, son, and a very frisky Swedish Vallhund.
President & CEO · AWCEM Consulting Inc.
Walter Wood, CD, MEng, Colonel (retired), served in the CAF for 36 years. As a career Signals officer, he fulfilled an extensive variety of roles developing, supporting, and managing defence and military communications and IT systems in Canada and abroad. Highlights include commanding the Canadian Forces School of Communications and Electronics in Kingston, commanding 7 Communication Group in Ottawa, and serving on operational tours in Cyprus, Somalia, Bosnia, and Afghanistan. Upon taking his release from the Forces in 2018, Walter joined Public Services and Procurement Canada as an IT executive, where he was responsible for delivering government-wide enterprise application services programs. In 2022, he served for three months in the Ukrainian International Legion in combat against Russian Forces. Since 2023, he has been consulting on cyber security program development within the Department of National Defence. Walter now volunteers as the President of AFCEA Ottawa Chapter, a non-profit, non-lobbying organization dedicated to professional development and collaboration among IT and C5ISRT professionals in Canada's Defence and Security Sector. He holds a B.Eng. (Electrical) from RMC, a B.A. from U of Waterloo, an M.Eng. (Telecommunications Technology Management) from Carleton U, and is a graduate of the NATO Defense College Senior Course and the Canadian Forces College National Security Studies Program.
Willy Tenadjang is a technology executive currently serving as CIO and Director of Information Systems at Cégep Heritage College in Gatineau. With over a decade of progressive IT leadership across higher education, social services, and the private sector, he specializes in IT governance, cybersecurity, and digital transformation.
Partner, Incident Response and Crisis Management · Ceiba Law
Shawn Ford, LL.M., is a Partner at Ceiba Law, where he serves as a trusted advisor to technology-driven and multinational organizations navigating complex incident response, data privacy, cybersecurity, and strategic risk matters. As a breach coach, he leads clients through high-stakes cyber incidents while advising on crisis management and crisis communications strategy across the pre-incident, active response, and post-incident phases. Shawn delivers business-ready legal solutions that align regulatory obligations with operational realities, helping organizations turn compliance into a strategic advantage. His practice includes building and operationalizing enterprise-wide risk, privacy, and third-party risk management programs, working closely with executives, CISOs, privacy officers, and boards to strengthen institutional resilience.
Sami Khoury is a retired Government of Canada senior national security executive whose career focused on safeguarding Canada's digital infrastructure and advancing national security interests. He most recently served as the Government of Canada Senior Official for Cyber Security, providing expert advice and guidance to deputy ministers and senior officials on cyber security risks, priorities, and resilience. Sami joined the Communications Security Establishment in 1992 and held a wide range of operational and executive leadership roles over the course of his career. From 2021 to 2024, he was Head of the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security (the Cyber Centre). He also served as CSE's Chief Information Officer and led the organization's research program as well as its 24/7 Operations Centre. Sami holds a Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering, a Master of Applied Science from Concordia University in Montréal, and a certificate in Public Sector Leadership from the University of Ottawa. He is the recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and the APEX Award of Excellence for Innovation.