Cryptologic Officer Makes ... Great

North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) President and CEO Gerry Cauley is pleased to announce the addition of Mark Weatherford as Vice President and Chief Security Officer to the NERC executive team. Weatherford recently was named CSO of the Year by SC Magazine.

“Mark’s achievements and his collaborative leadership style make him the right person at this critical time for NERC” Cauley said. “Cybersecurity issues continue to be one of NERC’s top priorities and Mark’s knowledge and expertise will be vital as we continue to address critical infrastructure standards.”

Weatherford served as the director and chief information security officer in the State of California’s Office of Information Security, a position he was appointed to by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. In this role, he had authority over California’s cyber security activities and established the state’s first official IT security plan and strategy. Previously, Weatherford served as the chief information security officer for the State of Colorado, where he worked with the State Legislature to pass laws establishing the state’s first security program.

Weatherford began his career as a Naval Cryptologic Officer, where he led the Navy’s Computer Network Defense (CND) operations and the Naval Computer Incident Response Team (NAVCIRT). Weatherford has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Arizona and a master’s degree from the Naval Postgraduate School. He holds the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) certifications and was awarded Information Security magazine’s prestigious “Security 7 Award” for 2008.