Timothy Garcia

Garcia draws on more than 25 years of experience across military, technology, and financial sectors. He began in the U.S. Navy as an instructor and engineering leader, building a foundation in systems operations and technical training. Earlier in his career, he served in roles at Intel before spending over 16 years at Wells Fargo as Vice President and Information Security Engineer, leading threat detection and security monitoring efforts. He previously served as Head of Network Security at Santander US, where he led Zero Trust implementation efforts within the Santander US operating environment. In his current role at ADP, Garcia leads incident response investigations and develops automation processes to improve operational efficiency.

Garcia holds multiple industry certifications, including Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), along with GIAC certifications such as GIAC Security Essentials Certification (GSEC), GIAC Certified Incident Handler (GCIH), GIAC Certified Enterprise Defender (GCED), GIAC Continuous Monitoring Certification (GMON), GIAC Certified Cloud Forensics Responder (GCCC), and GIAC Information Security Fundamentals (GISF). He also holds an MBA in Technology Management. These credentials include coverage across security fundamentals as well as areas such as incident response, continuous monitoring, and cloud forensics. In addition to his operational leadership, Garcia has more than a decade of experience as an adjunct instructor teaching information security, risk management, and ethical hacking at universities in the Phoenix area.

Tim brings experience from both operational roles and academic instruction. He incorporates examples from his professional experience into course discussions and addresses how security concepts apply in operational environments. The course covers how security operations function in practice and how those concepts can be applied in organizational environments. Outside the classroom, he remains active in mentoring teams and supporting the development of cybersecurity professionals.

Qualifications Summary

• Principal Instructor, SANS Institute
• Incident Response Lead, ADP
• Instructor for SEC401: Security Essentials and SEC511: Cybersecurity Engineering: Advanced Threat Detection and Monitoring
• Former Head of Network Security, Santander US
• Vice President, Information Security Engineer at Wells Fargo
• GIAC Certifications: GSEC, GCIH, GCED, GMON, GCCC, GISF
• CISSP Certified