Ben Powell
About Ben Powell
Ben Powell is a Senior Security Engineer with extensive experience in cybersecurity, having worked for various companies including Raytheon and Northrop Grumman. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Oceanography and a Master's degree in Information Security Engineering, and currently provides security analysis and cloud configuration reviews at Fortalice Solutions, LLC.
Work at Fortalice Solutions
Ben Powell has been employed at Fortalice Solutions, LLC as a Senior Security Engineer since 2021. In this role, he focuses on enhancing clients' security postures through comprehensive analysis and configuration reviews. His responsibilities include performing gap analyses of security tools and network configurations, which helps clients identify areas for improvement in their cybersecurity strategies.
Education and Expertise
Ben Powell holds a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Oceanography, Chemical and Physical from the University of West Florida, which he completed from 2010 to 2014. He furthered his education by obtaining a Master's degree in Information Security Engineering from the SANS Technology Institute between 2019 and 2021. Additionally, he completed a Cybersecurity program at Cisco Networking Academy in 2017.
Background in Cybersecurity
Ben Powell has extensive experience in cybersecurity, having worked in various roles across multiple organizations. He served as a Senior Cyber Design Engineer II at Raytheon for seven months in 2019 and as a Senior Cyber Security Analyst at CSRA Inc from 2017 to 2018. His previous positions also include roles at Northrop Grumman and VOR TECHNOLOGY, where he contributed to cybersecurity training and information assurance.
Professional Contributions
In his professional capacity, Ben Powell leads hypothesis threat hunts within client environments, showcasing his proactive approach to cybersecurity. He reviews network diagrams to ensure adherence to security best practices and performs configuration reviews on cloud systems, including AWS, Azure, and GCP. His work emphasizes a strong focus on optimizing security measures and maintaining robust network security architecture.
Previous Roles and Experience
Prior to his current role, Ben Powell gained valuable experience as a Senior Cyber Instructor at VOR TECHNOLOGY from 2015 to 2017 and as a Computer Repair Technician at Geek Squad from 2010 to 2011. He also held positions at Raytheon as a Senior Information Assurance Cyber Specialist II and at Springboard as a Cyber Security Mentor, where he contributed to the development of cybersecurity skills in others.