Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on China’s Threat to U.S. Cybersecurity
Jen Easterly
WSB Exclusive Speaker
Former Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency; CEO of RSAC
Jen Easterly, the former Director of America's top cyber defense agency (CISA), stands at the intersection of cybersecurity, national security, and corporate resilience, guiding leaders to convert global threats into strategic advantage. Drawing on decades of high-stakes experience — from building the Army’s first cyber battalion to advising the White House — she delivers the proven, future-focused strategies every organization needs to thrive in the digital age.
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Jen Easterly is the CEO of RSAC, the world’s most influential cybersecurity convening platform and host of the leading cybersecurity conference. As CEO, she is stewarding RSAC into a new era—one where cybersecurity and AI are inextricably linked, and where secure and resilient digital technology has become an urgent global imperative.
A highly decorated U.S. Army veteran, Easterly spent more than three decades in intelligence, cyber operations, and national security, including roles at the National Security Agency (NSA) where she commanded the Army’s first cyber operations unit and helped design and build U.S. Cyber Command. Most recently, she served as Senate-confirmed Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA)—America’s Cyber Defense Agency—where she led the national effort to secure critical infrastructure, strengthen public-private collaboration, and advance software security and resilience. In the private sector, she served as Morgan Stanley’s Head of Firm Resilience and built and led its Global Cybersecurity Fusion Center, integrating intelligence, threat operations, crisis management, and incident response at one of the world’s largest financial institutions.
Easterly is widely regarded as one of the world’s preeminent voices on secure-by-design software, AI-driven cybersecurity, and organizational resilience. Her work focuses on aligning technological progress with security, resilience, and innovation — and on mobilizing the global technology community to build systems worthy of trust.
A dynamic, engaging, and sought-after speaker, Easterly brings unparalleled insight from the front lines of government, finance, national defense, and global technology.
She speaks on:
· The convergence of cybersecurity and AI
· How to build resilient organizations and infrastructures
· Leadership through disruption and technological change
· Innovation ecosystems and the future of cyber talent
· Global security, risk, and the new digital geopolitical landscape
Her message is clear and energizing: we are living through the most transformative period in the history of technology — and the choices we make now will determine whether AI and digital innovation make the world safer, stronger, and more resilient.
Featured Videos
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly: Speaker Reel
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on the Rising Costs of Cyber Attacks
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on Cultivating a Growth Mindset Culture in Mission-Driven Teams
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on How Businesses Can Stay Prepared for Cyber Threats
Jen Easterly
Jen Easterly on China’s Threat to U.S. Cybersecurity
Jen Easterly’s Speech Topics
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Defending the Digital Frontier: Securing Critical Infrastructure in an Era of Innovation
Jen Easterly offers audiences a blueprint for safeguarding vital assets and operational technology, drawing from her tenure at the helm of America’s top cyber defense agency. Audiences will gain an actionable framework to protect against escalating cyber threats — laying the groundwork for sustained competitiveness and operational resilience in the face of relentless digital disruption.
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The Promise and Peril of Emerging Technology: Operating at the Intersection of Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity
In this high-impact keynote, Jen Easterly explores the revolutionary potential of AI to transform industries while revealing the hidden vulnerabilities that could undermine our collective future. Drawing on her tenure as the former Director of CISA, she unpacks how deepfakes corrode trust, how autonomous cyber weapons threaten vital infrastructure, and how an unprepared policy landscape can leave organizations dangerously exposed. With her unique blend of frontline government expertise and private-sector acumen, she provides an actionable roadmap for harnessing AI’s transformative power without sacrificing security and resilience. Attendees will leave with a clear vision of how to effectively drive innovation in an era of unprecedented technological disruption.
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The Imagination Coefficient: Leadership and the Art of Building Amazing Teams to Solve Your Toughest Challenges
Drawing from her experiences from West Point to the White House to Wall Street, multiple combat deployments, and her tenure as Director of America’s premiere cyber defense agency, Jen Easterly illustrates how failures of imagination have led to catastrophic events—from 9/11 to cyberattacks—and how imagination, combined with leadership and storytelling, can drive innovation, resilience, and security in the digital age. By blending her experiences in national security, finance, and technology, she imparts actionable guidance on leading in high-stakes environments—ensuring your organization is primed to thrive amid uncertainty, complexity, and technological upheaval.
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Transforming Cybersecurity: From Cost Center to Competitive Advantage
In this dynamic and inspiring keynote, Jen Easterly explains in detail how business leaders can turn cybersecurity from a cost center into a competitive advantage. Drawing on lessons from the battlefield in Baghdad to the boardrooms of Wall Street, Easterly illustrates how security builds trust, resilience fuels innovation, and companies that prioritize cybersecurity will be the market leaders of tomorrow. She calls for a shift from blame culture to continuous learning, from prevention to resilience, and from siloed efforts to operational collaboration. In a world where cyber threats are relentless, Easterly delivers a powerful message: organizations that embed security into their DNA will not just survive—they will thrive.
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Newsflash: “We Don’t Have a Cybersecurity Problem”
In this provocative and inspiring keynote, Jen Easterly reframes the story of cybersecurity as a tale of villains, victims, vendors—and ultimately, visionaries. She challenges the industry to move beyond glamorizing attackers and blaming victims, and instead confront the real issue: defective software products that have normalized insecurity. Easterly calls for a global movement to demand more secure software, urging technology vendors, policymakers, investors, and customers alike to stop blaming users and start fixing the root cause: insecure products. With rallying cries to challenge the status quo and reimagine a safer digital future, she inspires us all to become the visionaries who will change the story of cybersecurity—for good.
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