Chris Edmundson

Chris’s career has moved through system administration, information security, data center architecture, application administration, enterprise architecture, and security operations. He previously served as Information Security Officer at the Colorado Department of Education and later managed security operations for the University of Colorado Denver-Anschutz Medical Campus. His work at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus included incident analysis and response, vulnerability management, firewall and network security, security architecture, SIEM, monitoring and alerting, endpoint security, and NIST-based controls for enterprise research systems. He draws on that experience while teaching the labs, helping students connect identity controls, cloud logging, network protections, compliance, incident response, and penetration testing to decisions defenders face in cloud environments.

Chris holds twelve GIAC certifications, along with ITILv3, TOGAF, and the Certificate of Cloud Security Knowledge from the Cloud Security Alliance. Chris is also a faculty member of the SANS Technology Institute. SANS.edu has been designated an NSA Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense and is a multi-year winner of the National Cyber League competition. Beyond teaching, he has served as an advisor on data science and cybersecurity degree programs through the Campus Computing Task Force at the University of Colorado Denver and has participated in cloud enablement planning for the University of Colorado system.

Chris teaches with the belief that cloud security is too dynamic to learn passively. He brings his own operational experience into class while encouraging students to learn from one another, the same “it takes a village” mindset. He teaches students to identify cloud security risks, choose practical controls, protect data, use logging for accountability, support response work, and communicate cloud security concepts clearly. One of his career highlights has been mentoring students through the SANS CyberTalent Diversity Cyber Academy program and seeing them get excited about a future in cloud security. Outside of work, Chris is grateful to call Colorado home, where he climbs fourteeners, fly fishes, hunts, and camps with family. He also enjoys traveling beyond Colorado to explore world-class scuba diving destinations, including adventures on the Great Barrier Reef and the Florida Keys, and can rarely resist an opportunity to experiment with new technology.

Qualifications Summary

• Master of Science in Educational Human Resource Development, Texas A&M University
• Bachelor of Science in Curriculum and Instruction, Texas A&M University,
• GIAC Certifications: GIAC Information Security Professional (GISP); GIAC Security Essentials (GSEC); GIAC Certified Forensic Analyst (GCFA); GIAC Security Leadership (GSLC); GIAC Certified Incident Handler (GCIH); GIAC Systems and Network Auditor (GSNA); GIAC Penetration Tester (GPEN); GIAC Mobile Device Security Analyst (GMOB); GIAC Global Industrial Cyber Security Professional (GICSP); GIAC Critical Controls Certification (GCCC), GIAC Cloud Security Essentials (GCLD), GIAC Public Cloud Security (GPCS)
• Other Professional Credentials: Information Technology Infrastructure Library version 3 (ITILv3), The Open Group Architecture Framework (TOGAF), Certificate of Cloud Security Knowledge (CCSK)
• Key Achievements: Solution Delivery Manager at World Wide Technology; SANS Certified Instructor; previously served as Security Operations Manager at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and as Information Security Officer at the Colorado Department of Education; more than 25 years in information technology, primarily across K-12 public schools and higher education.
• Courses: Instructor for SEC502: Cloud Security Tactical Defense and LDR520: Emerging Trends for Cyber Leaders: AI and Cloud
• Community Contributions: Cybersecurity mentor (ICMCP/SANS CyberTalent), academic advisor at the University of Colorado Denver, contributor to the University of Colorado’s C3 Cloud Enablement initiative, and speaker at RMOUG, Oracle OpenWorld, and Colorado’s Office of Information Technology.