Michael Theis

Chief Counterintelligence Expert, Carnegie Mellon University CERT Insider Threat Center

Theis is chief counterintelligence expert at Carnegie Mellon's CERT Insider Threat Center. Theis has more than 25 years of experience as a counterintelligence supervisory special agent supporting the U.S. intelligence community, and more than 30 years of concurrent computer systems engineering experience. At Carnegie Mellon's CERT Insider Threat Center, Theis focuses on research and development of socio-technical controls in computational endoparacology. Previously, he was the first cyber counterintelligence program manager for the National Reconnaissance Office, where he served as chief of cyber-CI investigations and operations for more than six years.

We've Been Breached: Now What? Working with Law Enforcement, Regulators and Other Third Parties

Presented by Kenrick Bagnall , Luis Cerritos , Ruth Promislow , Michael Theis • August 24, 2017

Too many organizations continue to address breach response from a reactive mode - having a crude disaster-recovery plan in place in case something "does" happen, rather than accepting that something "will" happen and proactively preparing for it. In this session, a panel of legal, technical and law enforcement experts...

Insider Threat Detection: Lessons from the Trenches Based on Real Insider Cases

Presented by Michael Theis • July 28, 2017

This session shares the empirical findings of the CERT Insider Threat Center's more than 15 years of research into both malicious and unintentional insider threats. The findings demonstrate how pervasive the insider threat is in all sectors, both private and public. The session also outlines what types of threats are...

Insider Threat Detection: How to Develop a Successful Program

Presented by Michael Theis • June 1, 2017

What are the biggest threats to your organization's data? Recent media attention to high-profile cyberattacks would lead an organization to think external threats are its only concern. Unfortunately, this misconception allows another significant threat to your organization's critical assets to stay completely under...