Fortinet OT Day

Rich Springer is the Senior Director of OT Solutions Marketing at Fortinet. In this role, Rich works alongside regional marketing teams, OT product management and OT threat researchers to promote the Fortinet Fabric of OT Solutions including network security, zero-trust, security operations and AI-powered threat intelligence for IT/OT converged and OT market segments. Previously, Rich was the Head of Industrial Cyber Strategy & Development for Tripwire managing the Industrial cyber product business for Belden, including the Hirschmann and Tripwire product lines.

While evolving in the business of cyber security software and hardware development, Rich provides an operational background as a prior global head of SCADA in wind energy and across various roles in the semiconductor industry and the submarine nuclear Navy. He has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Oregon State University and resides in Portland, Oregon. Rich is excited to lead, educate, and develop network and cyber security solutions for his customers and global cyber

Rod has worked in OT cybersecurity for over 18 years, focused on vulnerability testing, OT-specific network security, embedded product security and OT security standards through past roles at Wurldtech, GE Digital, and Sierra Wireless. Rod is a Director of Product Management at Fortinet, focused on OT threat protection and the OT Security Platform. Rod is a member of the ISA Global Cybersecurity Alliance and the MITRE Center for Threat-Informed Defense.

As a former OT Cybersecurity leader at Magna, I provided their 300+ global manufacturing locations with direction and focus on risk reducing initiatives in their factory floor environments.  This included program management, cybersecurity architecture, strategy and roadmaps.  With over 30 years of manufacturing IT / OT experience, I am considered an expert in the field.

 My mission is to aid manufacturing facilities in enhancing their security posture while maintaining or improving quality and efficiency in producing products.  My role helped those manufacturing sites with their unique designs implement cybersecurity frameworks and IT/OT architectures, overseeing complex and large-scale capital projects involving IT/OT integration, visibility and detection solutions and network segmentation initiatives.  These projects required me to manage a global team, budgets and timelines while allowing me to demonstrate my IT and OT skills.

I am an enterprise cybersecurity and technology executive with more than 20 years of experience leading IT, OT, and cyber-physical security strategy across critical infrastructure, energy, manufacturing, water, and industrial sectors.

 My career has been built on aligning cybersecurity, operational technology, and digital transformation initiatives with measurable business outcomes. I operate at the intersection of enterprise risk, operational resilience, and executive leadership, translating complex technical exposure into strategic decisions that protect revenue, enable growth, and strengthen governance.

 I have led enterprise IT and OT modernization programs, cybersecurity transformations, and risk management initiatives spanning distributed industrial environments and multi-site operations. My experience includes establishing security governance frameworks, implementing structured risk management programs, leading cross-functional IT/OT convergence initiatives, and advising executive teams on regulatory compliance and operational continuity.

José Seara is the Founder and CEO of DeNexus, building the global standard for industrial OT cyber-physical risk quantification. With over three decades of experience founding and scaling critical infrastructure companies across Europe and North America, he brings operator credibility to one of industrial security’s hardest problems: translating cyber threats into financial risk that boards, insurers, and investors can act on.

Previously, he grew NaturEner — a utility-scale renewable energy independent power producer — from a start-up concept to over $100 million in revenues in less than 10 years. He is a recognized voice at the intersection of OT security, cyber insurance, and infrastructure resilience.

Hossein Jazi is a Principal Threat Intelligence Specialist at Fortinet, where he plays a key role as an active researcher with expertise in APT tracking, malware analysis, cyber threat intelligence, and AI security. His work focuses on identifying and monitoring APT activities, as well as publishing in-depth analyses of their operations. Hossein was the first to identify and name the  Evasive Panda and Lazy Scripter threat actors, and he has authored more than 50 blogs profiling various cyber adversaries. His current initiatives include developing proactive techniques to track threat actors, collaborating with partners to create advanced research tools, and leading efforts to disrupt and dismantle cybercriminal operations. With a master’s degree in computer science and over 15 years of experience specializing in cybersecurity and APT analysis, Hossein continues to push the boundaries of threat research to make the digital world more secure.

Over his 40-year career in security, Gaétan has held senior positions within the Canadian government, including Chief Engineer for Telecommunications Security at the Department of National Defence, Director of Security at Global Affairs Canada, and Consul at the Canadian Embassy in Peru following the 1996-1997 Shining Path terrorist crisis in Lima.

In the private sector, he has served as CSO for renowned companies such as Bombardier Aerospace, Airbus Group (Paris, France), and Bell Canada, where he notably wrote the IT and telecommunications security plan for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

Since 2015, after leading the national cybersecurity practice for EY Canada, Gaétan has worked as an independent consultant on multiple mandates and joined Fortinet as the Enterprise CISO in 2024.

Paul Smith is the former CTO for SCADAfence a Honeywell acquired Cybersecurity company.

A published author of the book: “Pentesting Industrial Control Systems”

Paul has spent 20+ years in the Automation Control space, tackling the “red herring” problems thrown his way.  Unique issues include measurement imbalances resulting from flare sensor saturation, database migration mishaps, EEPROM production line failures, and many more.  This ultimately led to the later part of his career, where he has been spending most of his time in the Industrial Cybersecurity space, pioneering the use of new security technology in the energy, utility and critical infrastructure sectors and helping develop cybersecurity strategies through the use of red team/pentest engagements, cybersecurity risk assessments, and tabletop exercises for some of the world’s largest government contractors, industrial organizations, and municipalities.

Fortinet

Jeff Brown is a Professional Technologist with over 25 years of experience in the OT industry and the national OT practice lead at Fortinet.

He has a diverse background of working in the electrical wholesale industry, EPC, OEM, gas, petroleum, mining, wood, control systems, network, wireless design and cybersecurity industry. His diverse background of being both on the sales and engineering side allows him to bring practical solutions to complex problems for OT cybersecurity.

Jeff’s personal mission at Fortinet is to help Canadians and companies safely thrive in our ever-changing digital economy.

A seasoned technology professional with over 25 years of combined experience across highly regulated, mission-critical industries. Operating at the critical intersection of IT, operational technology (OT), and industrial cybersecurity, he specializes in bridging the gap between digital networks and physical processes.

His diverse background spans banking and mainline retail data security, alongside extensive work supporting ICS OEM solutions and critical infrastructure OT communication customers. Drawing on his roots as a technical sales professional in the power electronics and semiconductor industry, he regularly collaborates with engineering teams to solve their toughest hardware challenges.

Today, he leverages this multi-industry insight to secure the vulnerable touchpoints where automation meets connectivity, bringing practical, resilient solutions to complex OT cybersecurity problems.

Tristan Kim is a cybersecurity and business leader with over 15 years of experience spanning cybersecurity, technology, and risk management. As Head of Security Sales & Business Development at KORE Solutions, he leads growth and strategic initiatives across operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) cybersecurity, with a focus on protecting connected environments and cyber-physical systems.

Prior to KORE, Tristan founded and led Joseon Group, Canada’s first cyber brokerage, pioneering an integrated approach to cybersecurity, risk management, and cyber insurance. Today, he is focused on advancing cyber resilience across OT, IT, IoT, smart buildings, and critical infrastructure while building strategic partnerships that help organizations securely navigate an increasingly connected world.