World-Class Cyber Security Experts
Ed Skoudis
CEO AND FOUNDER
Ed Skoudis is the CEO and founder of Counter Hack, leading the organization towards its mission of making the world a safer and more secure place. Ed is a well-cited expert in the field of cybersecurity and has over two decades of experience in penetration testing, incident response, and security risk assessments. Ed speaks often at the industry’s biggest conferences, has co-authored several books on ethical hacking, and has received numerous honors including the US Army’s Order of Thor Medal. Today, Ed works closely with all of Counter Hack’s clients to apply his deep understanding of hacker exploits and attacks.
Joshua Wright
SENIOR TECHNICAL DIRECTOR
Joshua is the Senior Director of Counter Hack and one of the globe’s top experts on mobile device security. Through his experiences as a penetration tester, Joshua has worked with hundreds of organizations on attacking and defending mobile devices and wireless systems, ethically disclosing significant product and protocol security weaknesses to well-known organizations. Joshua also oversees the development of the annual SANS Holiday Hack Challenge, the world’s most fun and festive global information security challenge.
Lynn Schifano
VICE PRESIDENT OF BUSINESS OPERATIONS
Lynn Schifano guides new business initiatives and operations for the firm including strategic planning, financial management, human resources, and client engagement. Lynn is passionate about helping organizations across a range of industries better understand their cybersecurity risks and protect their enterprises. Lynn graduated from Syracuse University and worked in the media and fashion industry before landing at Counter Hack. In her free time, you can find her enjoying college basketball, yoga, and the beaches of the Jersey Shore with her husband and three children.
Patrick Chapman
VICE PRESIDENT OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
As VP of Business Development, Patrick is responsible for driving new strategic partnerships and managing client relationships. He is laser focused on merging client needs with our cybersecurity solutions to minimize risk and enhance the well-being of our partners. Patrick loves to collaborate with all stakeholders to create impactful, lasting relationships. Based out of Los Angeles, you can often find him on the back roads of wine country in search of the perfect pinot noir or out for a canyon run.
Janusz “JJ” Jasinski
SENIOR TECHNICAL ENGINEER
JJ is Counter Hack's first UK member. A developer with over 20 years experience, mostly in the UK public sector, he's had to wear many hats from a frontend to a backend developer, a DBA and almost inevitably becoming the in-house 'security person.’ JJ started doing the SANS Holiday Hack Challenge in 2015 where he won a 'best creative' prize and then went on to win the grand prize the following year and subsequent 'super honourable' mentions. JJ's passion for all things security is only outdone by his love for his friends, family and his beloved Liverpool FC football (not soccer) team. In his spare time he loves rowing, going to gigs and festivals.
Thomas Bouve
SENIOR TECHNICAL ENGINEER
Thomas joins Counter Hack from the historical city of Bruges, Belgium. As a former threat hunt team lead for a Fortune 100 company, he brings over a decade of experience in managed security service design and delivery, proactive threat hunting, cyber defense, and incident response. Thomas is passionate about sharing knowledge and helping others learn. As a former SANS Holiday Hack Challenge player his write-ups have garnered praise from the community and won several awards, including best technical and best overall answer. Outside of work, Thomas likes to venture out and explore the world, go hiking, and spend precious moments with his wife and two sons.
Mark Devito
SENIOR TECHNICAL ENGINEER
Mark began his adventure into computers, programming, and hacking back in 1982. Since then he has had a wide range of career experiences which support his unique and creative approach to information security. Most recently he retired from the FBI as a Supervisory Special Agent with over 20 years of experience in intelligence and computer investigations. While at the FBI, Mark frequently did INFOSEC public outreach and spent several years training new agents and analysts in basic and advanced computer topics. He is an adjunct faculty at Virginia Tech and holds degrees from Millersville University in PA and Virginia Tech; however, he is a hacker at heart. Mark enjoys collecting and restoring vintage computer systems and electronics, amateur astronomy, and learning to play the cello.
Chris Davis
SENIOR TECHNICAL ENGINEER
Chris Davis is a highly experienced penetration tester and CTF challenge developer. He oversaw the design and development of the widely-acclaimed Core NetWars Continuous 2 training program, and has contributed to many other popular Holiday Hack and NetWars challenges. Chris has extensive experience working for government agencies and Fortune 500 companies in both offensive and defensive cyber operations. He also has a strong passion for participating in and creating CTFs that help advance the cyber community. When not at the computer, Chris loves spending time outdoors backpacking, camping, and being out on the water.
Paul Beckett
SENIOR TECHNICAL ENGINEER
In the span of his 20-year career, Paul has acquired a wide range of skills while working in Research Institutes, Universities, and the Banking sector. His roles have been diverse, including developer, architect, lead application security specialist, and security engineer. Since 2015, he has focused on information security, gaining expertise in threat modeling, system and application hardening, and penetration testing. Paul obtained the SANS GSEC certification in 2015 and became an Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP) in 2016. He is passionate about information security and enjoys sharing his knowledge with others. During his free time, he loves spending with his children, hiking, and paddle boarding.
Kyle Parrish
SENIOR TECHNICAL ENGINEER
Kyle, a former Blue Team lead for MSPs and large mortgage corporations, comes to Counter Hack with over 14 years of experience in the IT and Security industry. Kyle has earned multiple Super Honorable Mentions in Holiday Hack and served as a Kringle Concierge. Known as the 'PowerShell guy,' he excels in automating complex tasks, turning the mundane into a tech symphony. Beyond his technical prowess, Kyle enjoys family adventures such as geocaching, fishing, and mountain biking. Hailing from Florida, he brings an easygoing, sunshine state vibe to every tech challenge, adding a touch of whimsy to the binary world.
Evan Booth
BUILDER AND ARCHITECT
Evan Booth is a builder, architect, developer, and challenge designer at Counter Hack. Armed with a profound fascination with how things are built, Evan has spent the past 15 years working on the creative, strategic, and engineering components of software and hardware projects for a wide variety of clients. Evan enjoys building stuff out of other stuff, spending time with his family, and all things meta.
Eric Pursley
TECHNICAL ENGINEER
Eric began his infosec career as a Cyber Warfare Operator in the Air National Guard, successfully leading IR and vulnerability assessment missions. From the start, he was determined to shift his profession into offensive cybersecurity, eventually enrolling in the Ethical Hacking graduate program at the SANS Technology Institute, which introduced him to Ed Skoudis and Counter Hack for excelling above his peers. While comparatively new, he has equal passion for making the world a more secure place through hacking and educating others, which makes Counter Hack the perfect fit. When not on keyboard, Eric plays and mods video games, rides his motorcycle, exercises, travels, tries new food, and frequently flies with his wife while she pilots the plane.
Chris Elgee
BUILDER AND BREAKER
Chris Elgee is a Core NetWars Tournament design lead and penetration tester. At Counter Hack, he creates Holiday Hack and NetWars challenges designed to be fun, engaging, and (gasp!) educational for players of all skill levels. Through his work with SANS and the Army National Guard, Chris shares his love of cybersecurity to educate, prepare, and inspire students and soldiers alike. Outside of work, Chris enjoys volunteering, playing bass at church, and spending time with his wife and four kids.
Kevin McFarland
SENIOR TECHNICAL ENGINEER
With computer networking and information security, Kevin McFarland found the perfect home for his fascination with the magic that drives our interconnected world, and the challenges it presents. Starting before the turn of the century, Kevin's career has consisted of assisting organizations, helping them leverage technologies in a secure manner. For over 10 years, his passion for solving puzzles has proven a natural fit for conducting penetration tests for many different types of organizations. Away from work, although Kevin spends time with hobbies such as Amateur Astronomy, Shortwave Radio, and retro-gaming, he finds the most reward in spending time with his wife and daughter, who have brought the most important kind of magic to his world.
Jared Folkins
VERY SENIOR TECHNICAL ENGINEER
Since the DotCom era Jared has worn many hats and is a full-stack talent in the purest sense. From architecting infrastructure with container recipes or hand crafting artisanal SQL, to programming applications or exploiting them, he loves it all. He is thankful to work with such a talented team and enjoys watching highly competent people do amazing things. When not nerding, he spends his time volunteering at his local Church to help free men from addiction. He does this alongside the love of his life Jaimi, while they work together to raise their meager brood of lovable kidlets.
Tom Hessman
CYBER RANGE SUPPORT AND QA LEAD
Tom Hessman has been at Counter Hack since the beginning, leading all efforts for quality assurance and testing for NetWars, Holiday Hack Challenge, CyberQuest, and more. With a background in systems administration, Tom works on the operations team, providing behind-the-scenes support for NetWars with the occasional crowd-favorite appearance as TomZilla for CyberCity events. His unparalleled bug-finding ability is a critical part of challenge reliability and the delivery of intended learning goals for our projects. When not working on Counter Hack projects, Tom shares his love and support for the theater, volunteering in many capacities at his local community theater, and as an audience member, at any opportunity.