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ABOUT CYBER DEFENSE CENTER
NEARLY 15 YEARS OF PROTECTION
The Cyber Defense Center is a registered 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to strengthening collective cyber defense through operational cyber defense services, workforce development, research, innovation, and community engagement. Guided by our ASCEND | DEFEND philosophy, we believe that cybersecurity is ultimately about protecting people, communities, and the critical services that power modern society.
What makes us different is our commitment to combining mission-driven service with real-world expertise. We operate at the intersection of consulting, education, research, public awareness, and community protection, helping organizations improve readiness while developing the next generation of cyber defenders. Through our transparent and community-focused model, we work to make advanced cybersecurity capabilities more accessible to organizations that may otherwise lack the resources to defend themselves against increasingly sophisticated threats.
Over the past fifteen years, our efforts have supported workforce development, advanced critical infrastructure protection, produced original cybersecurity research, contributed to national conversations on cyber readiness, and helped organizations prepare for, respond to, and recover from high-consequence cyber events. From training future defenders and supporting community resilience initiatives to publishing research, facilitating tabletop exercises, and advancing collective defense concepts, our mission remains focused on helping others ASCEND in capability and DEFEND what matters most.
The impact of the Cyber Defense Center is not measured solely by the services we provide, but by the people we have helped, the ideas we have advanced, the communities we have strengthened, and the partnerships we have built. The Cyber Defense Center has not merely participated in cybersecurity. It has created training programs, certifications, research models, operational doctrines, assessment methodologies, public awareness platforms, and community initiatives that continue to influence how cyber defense is practiced and understood.
ASCEND
ASCEND is the Cyber Defense Center's philosophy of workforce development and capability building. We believe that strong cyber defense begins with people. Technology changes, threats evolve, and adversaries adapt, but knowledgeable, prepared, and empowered defenders remain the foundation of resilient organizations and secure communities.
Our ASCEND program exists to cultivate the next generation of cyber defenders through education, mentorship, research, hands-on experience, and professional development. We seek to remove barriers to advanced cybersecurity knowledge and create pathways for students, practitioners, engineers, operators, and leaders to continuously improve their skills and expand their impact.
ASCEND is more than training. It is a commitment to lifelong learning, operational excellence, innovation, and service. Through certifications, workforce development initiatives, academic partnerships, scholarships, internships, research programs, and immersive learning experiences, we help individuals grow from awareness to expertise while strengthening the collective defense capabilities of the industries and communities they serve.
By investing in people, we create force multipliers for cyber defense. Every student trained, every certification earned, every researcher supported, and every future defender inspired contributes to a stronger, more resilient future.
DEFEND
DEFEND is the Cyber Defense Center's philosophy of collective defense and community protection. We believe cybersecurity is not solely an organizational responsibility, but a shared responsibility that extends across industries, communities, critical infrastructure sectors, and society itself. The strength of any defense is ultimately determined by the strength of the defenders standing beside it.
Our DEFEND program exists to transform knowledge into action by applying expertise, experience, and resources where they can have the greatest impact. Through consulting, readiness assessments, operational support, research, threat intelligence, community outreach, and mutual aid initiatives, we help organizations improve resilience against emerging cyber threats while strengthening the broader defense ecosystem.
DEFEND is founded on the principle that preparation reduces consequence. We focus on improving readiness before crises occur, helping organizations understand their risks, measure their capabilities, validate their defenses, and strengthen their ability to prevent, detect, respond to, and recover from cyber incidents. Particular emphasis is placed on protecting critical infrastructure, essential services, and underserved communities that often lack access to advanced cybersecurity resources.
DEFEND is more than a service model. It is a commitment to trust, transparency, stewardship, and collective action. By connecting experts, organizations, educators, researchers, and community partners, we create force multipliers that improve resilience beyond any single company or institution. When communities defend together, everyone becomes stronger.
PROGRAM ALIGNMENT
The Cyber Defense Center was founded nearly 15 years ago to address a gap in cyber defense coordination between government, critical infrastructure, academia, and the private sector. A gap still exists today, perhaps even more so due to technology advancements such as AI. Through ASCEND | DEFEND alignment, we work to DEFEND WHAT MATTERS: people, communities, critical services, and the systems that make, move, connect, power, and sustain our world.
> ASCEND develops defenders.
> DEFEND applies capability.
> Trust Through Transparency earns credibility.
> Collective Defense creates cooperation.
> The Breach Report raises awareness.
> Force Posture Advisories improve readiness.
> OTSEC strengthens capability.
> Cyber Defense Capability Modeling reveals weakness.
> CRIT-11 trains AI copilots.
> The Annual Vulgarabilities Report forecasts demand.
> The Jefferson Cyber Defense Doctrine enables collective defense.
> Force Labs develops law enforcement grade digital evidence.
> The Cyber Defense Summit brings defenders together.
> Research & Innovation advances the discipline.
> Public Awareness informs the community.
> Charitable giving allows us to do this at scale.
> The Cyber Defense Center is changing HOW we do cybersecurity.
The Cyber Defense Center has created training programs, certifications, research models, operational doctrines, assessment methodologies, public awareness platforms, and community initiatives that influence how cyber defense is practiced and understood.
our community impact - so far
Research Discoveries & Threat Intelligence
- Three Top 10 breach discoveries and investigative research initiatives
- Research contributions supporting analysis of major infrastructure events, including the Iberian Power Outage
- Ongoing investigative analysis of breaches, emerging threats, fraud, and critical infrastructure security challenges
- CVE discovery and responsible disclosure in OT, Drones, Robotics, and emerging technologies
Cyber Defense & Operational Excellence
- Multiple successful consulting engagements completed across public and private sectors
- Numerous tabletop exercises, readiness reviews, and operational assessments facilitated
- Multi-entity cyber incident response and coordination support
- Development of wartime cyber readiness concepts and consequence-driven defense methodologies
- Track record of leaning into Public/Private sector partnerships to speed response and reduce regulatory impacts
National Leadership & Strategic Impact
- Largest DEFCON Village chartered, facilitated, and sponsored
- Partnerships and collaborative initiatives with government, academic, and industry organizations, including the U.S. Department of Energy
- Research and training contributions supporting emerging drone defense capabilities and critical infrastructure protection initiatives
- Development of collective defense programs serving communities, utilities, and critical infrastructure operators
Research & Innovation
- 50+ research projects incubated and supported
- Founder of Force Labs, a first-of-its-kind innovation and incubation laboratory dedicated to cybersecurity research, education, outreach, workforce development, and community engagement
- Creator of the Annual Vulgarabilities Report with 12 consecutive years of vulnerability forecasting and trend analysis
- Developer of the SILVER predictive risk and vulnerability research model
- Creator of the CRIT-11 AI Risk and Critical Infrastructure Training Model
- Author of the Jefferson Cyber Defense Doctrine
- Developer of the Chaos to Clarity methodology and related research frameworks
- Multiple public research publications advancing cybersecurity knowledge and awareness
Workforce Development & Education
- 100+ students, interns, and emerging defenders supported
- Two cybersecurity scholarships awarded to support future defenders
- Multiple cybersecurity training programs developed and delivered
- Creator and developer of OTSEC and operational technology cybersecurity training initiatives
- Developer of specialized training programs including Drone Hacking Training for EC-Council
- Multiple successful certification acceleration engagements improving workforce readiness
- Designed, funding, and staffing (earn and learn) a private ISO certified National Lab supporting community investigations with Digital and Multimedia evidence only to help vulnerable populations.
Public Awareness & Community Engagement
- Founder of The Breach Report, an investigative cyber journalism and breach awareness initiative dedicated to reporting cyber incidents, sharing threat intelligence, and improving public awareness
- Building one of the largest breach intelligence repositories and public breach databases ever assembled
- 50+ published articles, reports, and public awareness publications
- 25+ national presentations, workshops, and community outreach events
- Ongoing public education through investigative reporting, threat analysis, and community awareness initiatives
- Force Posture alerts for public threat awareness:
- 🟢 Level 1 Normal
- 🔵 Level 2 Elevated
- 🟡 Level 3 Alert
- 🟠 Level 4 Cyber Conflict
- 🔴 Level 5 Cyber Warfare
Community Impact & Fundraising
- Created original experiences that bring communities together and generate real-world impact
- Designed and released 14 original community engagement and fundraising games, one each year since the organization's founding
- Helped raise nearly $250,000 in charitable contributions supporting other nonprofit and community-focused organizations (majority veteran-aligned)
- Created innovative programs that combine cybersecurity awareness, education, community engagement, and charitable giving to future proof giving
- Performed several private investigations and innovating programs for human trafficking, child exploitation, fraud, digital crimes, and teen suicide prevention.
Doctrine, Methodologies & Industry Innovation
- Creator of the Force Posture Advisory Framework, one of the first structured models for measuring and communicating cyber wartime escalation levels and readiness conditions across critical infrastructure sectors
- Developed the Force Posture Advisory Program, providing strategic intelligence, threat monitoring, readiness guidance, and escalation assessments for emerging cyber conflicts and nation-state threats
- Contributed to the development and public understanding of cyber conflict concepts, including published definitions and doctrine related to cyber-enabled false flag operations within the Fifth Domain
- Creator of the Conformance / Performance Cyber Defense Model, an innovative approach that measures both compliance achievement and operational defense effectiveness
- Developed one of the only known capability-based cyber defense maturity models that enumerates and evaluates the full spectrum of defensive capabilities required to prevent, detect, respond to, and recover from cyber threats
- Mapped cyber defense capabilities to industry frameworks, controls, and technologies, creating a feature-function-based approach to cybersecurity maturity assessment
- Developed commercialized defense visualization and assessment methodologies that extend beyond traditional framework crosswalks and compliance scoring
- Created advanced maturity modeling techniques incorporating ATT&CK-based defensive capability measurement, kill chain analysis, readiness assessment, and consequence-informed engineering principles
- Developer of the forthcoming SECURE™ and FORTIFY™ certification frameworks designed to help organizations and technology providers objectively measure, validate, and improve cybersecurity effectiveness
- Advanced the concept of cybersecurity as a measurable engineering discipline by connecting organizational capabilities, technologies, frameworks, performance outcomes, and operational readiness into a unified defense model
Operational Technology Education & Critical Infrastructure Training
- Founder and developer of the OTSEC™ Training Program, designed to improve operational technology (OT) and critical infrastructure cybersecurity capabilities through immersive, hands-on education
- Creator of GridSim, an interactive electric grid and operational technology simulation environment developed to provide realistic OT cybersecurity training outside of national laboratory environments
- Developed one of the industry's first integrated OT workforce development pathways supporting electricity, energy, water, chemical, transportation, manufacturing, and other critical infrastructure sectors
- Incubated three progressive cybersecurity certifications:
- Cyber Defense Associate Certification (CDAC)
- Cyber Defense Professional Certification (CDPC)
- Cyber Defense Expert Certification (CDEC)
- Established a comprehensive training framework combining operational technology, engineering principles, cybersecurity, incident response, threat hunting, and critical infrastructure defense
- Advanced workforce development initiatives focused on preparing defenders for the unique challenges of cyber-physical systems and operational environments
- Helped bridge the gap between traditional IT cybersecurity training and the specialized requirements of critical infrastructure protection
- Created scalable educational models supporting utilities, cooperatives, municipalities, educational institutions, and private sector organizations responsible for operating essential services
OUR ORIGIN STORY
The CYBER DEFENSE CENTER (Center) was founded in 2011 in Dallas, Texas, by Erin Patrick Owens to fill a growing national gap in cyber defense readiness and public/private sector coordination. At the time, Mr. Owens served as a ranking member of the North Texas Crime Commission Cyber Committee and as President of North Texas InfraGard, the FBI’s premier cyber outreach partnership. These roles placed him at the center of early national discussions on critical infrastructure protection, intelligence-sharing, and cyber defense strategy.
Throughout the 2000s and early 2010s, Mr. Owens played active roles in shaping multiple regional and national mutual protection initiatives aligned with the National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) and Presidential Policy Directives 7 and 21. His leadership contributed to the formation or advancement of several key public/private sector partnerships, including:
- Regional Consortium Coordinating Council (RC3)
- RPCFirst
- dfwFIRST
- HoustonFIRST
- Advisory support to multiple Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs) and Fusion Centers
He also worked directly with Sector Coordinating Councils (SCCs) such as the FSSCC (Financial Services Sector Coordinating Council) and Government Coordinating Councils (GCCs) including the FBIIC (Federal Banking and Insurance Infrastructure Committee).
During the post-Hurricane Katrina recovery period, Mr. Owens helped lead regional efforts to roll out GETS (Government Emergency Telecommunications Service), Wireless Priority Service (WPS), and Telecommunications Service Priority (TSP) for the financial sector across the impacted Gulf Coast region to provide mission-critical government capabilities to the private sector for restoring communications resilience after a national disaster.
These national and regional engagements revealed a persistent, unaddressed gap: while federal and regional initiatives existed, no central coordinating center existed to support private-sector cyber defense preparedness at scale, particularly across critical infrastructure. Recognizing this need, Mr. Owens established the CYBER DEFENSE CENTER, filing it as a Texas nonprofit in 2011 and formally introducing the concept to the RC3 community in 2012.
In 2022, the CYBER DEFENSE CENTER celebrated 10 years of public/private sector collaboration, marking the milestone by opening its research operations to the public. Over the next decade, the Center intends to deliver transformative capabilities, broaden community readiness, and lead the national conversation on wartime and peacetime cyber defense.
Become part of the CYBER DEFENSE CENTER today and help shape the future of national cyber resilience.
From Research to Collective Defense
Nearly 15 years of Service, Science, and National Impact
The Cyber Defense Center was founded in 2011 to address a growing gap in cyber defense readiness and public/private sector coordination. Through leadership roles supporting critical infrastructure protection initiatives, intelligence-sharing programs, and national resilience efforts, the Center's founders recognized that while many organizations were working to improve cybersecurity, no central coordinating capability existed to help communities, critical infrastructure operators, academia, and the private sector strengthen cyber defense readiness together.
In 2012, the Cyber Defense Center launched its first community programs in partnership with the University of Texas at Dallas, bringing students, faculty, researchers, and industry professionals together in support of the public interest. Early successes in cyber investigations, vulnerability research, and threat analysis quickly expanded the organization's mission and impact.
By 2013, growth in research, education, and community service efforts led to the creation of two aligned but distinct organizations:
- CYBER DEFENSE CENTER – A national cybersecurity research organization focused on advancing the science of cyber defense.
- CYBER DEFENSE LABS – A university-aligned community partner organization focused on education, workforce development, and public service.
This structure enabled each organization to pursue its mission while remaining aligned around a common goal: improving cyber defense readiness through collaboration, innovation, and service.
In 2014, the Cyber Defense Center relocated its national headquarters to Colorado, where it continued to expand research capabilities, partnerships, and national impact. Over the following decade, the organization contributed to cybersecurity research, critical infrastructure protection, vulnerability discovery, threat modeling, emerging technology studies, and community defense initiatives.
From Science to Applied Sciences
For more than a decade, the Cyber Defense Center focused on advancing the science of cyber defense through research, experimentation, modeling, and innovation. That work produced new methodologies, training programs, certification frameworks, operational doctrines, readiness models, awareness initiatives, and community defense concepts.
In 2022, the Center transformed that body of research into practical capabilities that improve real-world outcomes. Through ASCEND | DEFEND, Force Labs, OTSEC, The Breach Report, Force Posture Advisories, and other community initiatives, we are applying the lessons of science to strengthen readiness, develop defenders, protect critical infrastructure, and improve collective defense.
What began as a research mission has evolved into a movement focused on turning knowledge into action.
LEADERSHIP
CHAIR | EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Erin Patrick Owens is the founder and Executive Director for the CYBER DEFENSE CENTER. Mr. Owens modeled the CYBER DEFENSE CENTER based on other public/private sector partnerships that he has founded, led, or participated in. Mr. Owens is a nationally recognized cyber defense leader and strategist with twenty years real world cyber security experience spanning several companies and industries. He has served as the top security leader (CISO) for 12 companies and has successfully delivered nearly 100 security transformation projects including deploying automation systems, operationalizing security initiatives that detect, prevent, and respond to active and potential cyber threats, and responding to major security incidents.
Through the CYBER DEFENSE CENTER and his personal career, he has actively responded to some of the largest breach and fraud cases in recent history and also frequently speaks at national hacking and security conferences on new and innovative ways to defend private sector networks. His security leadership philosophies focus on innovating programs through enablement, empowerment, and value driven programs.
In his tenure with the CYBER DEFENSE CENTER, he has developed many of the battle tested approaches that are now used by the CYBER DEFENSE CENTER services and programs to achieve value in security, balanced security models, reference architectures, and an intelligence driven defense posture.
CHEER US ON AND DONATE TODAY
CYBER DEFENSE CENTER is a not-for-profit, 501(c)3, charity organization. Your support and contributions will enable us to provision the knowledge and resources (ENERGY) needed to meet our ASCEND and DEFEND goals.
