About Erik Avakian

Erik Avakian is a global cybersecurity thought leader and executive. He is currently a Technical Counselor with Info-Tech Research Group and is the former state Chief Information Security Officer for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Erik is a regular media contributor on enterprise cybersecurity strategy and AI security. He has over 30 years of enterprise-level leadership experience in cybersecurity program management, strategy, service delivery, and program execution and spent 18 years in the public sector. In his twelve-and-a-half-year tenure in the Pennsylvania state CISO role, Erik amassed a wide range of practical cybersecurity leadership experience and spearheaded numerous successful enterprise initiatives and shared services.

Erik’s accomplishments and contributions to the security profession have been nationally recognized. In 2015, Erik was named by GovTech as one of the Top 10 Influencers in Government. Erik was named a Top 50 in Cybersecurity from StateScoop in 2018 and was named a Top 25 Doer, Dreamer & Driver from GovTech in 2019. During his public sector tenure, Erik served on the MS-ISAC Executive Committee for 8 years and was chair of the CISA SLTTGCC where he assisted with developing the nationwide strategic approach for cybersecurity for the state and local government sector. He is a frequent public speaker and is a published author. Erik holds numerous industry certifications including CISSP, CISM, CISA, and CRISC and is ITIL v3 certified and a Certified Government Chief Information Officer (CGCIO).