Master of Applied Cyber Security industry mentors

Abhay Vaish

Senior malware reverse engineer, Palo Alto Networks
Expertise: Malware analysis, reverse engineering, vulnerability and exploitation, defensive cyber solutions

Abhay Vaish is a malware reverse engineer with over a decade of experience developing defensive cybersecurity solutions. He has worked with leading product companies, including FireEye and Palo Alto Networks, where he analysed and reverse engineered malware to develop effective countermeasures.

Abhay holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science engineering, and has active interests in researching information security areas including malware analysis, vulnerability research, digital forensics, and web and network security.

Andrew McDonnell

Cybersecurity contrator
Expertise: Secure software development, vulnerability management, programmme development, threat hunting, reverse engineering, penetration testing, frameworks such as ISM, NIST.

Andrew McDonnell is a software developer and cybersecurity professional with a strong background in building and securing complex systems. He is a passionate hacker, maker and technology enthusiast, and has presented at conferences on topics ranging from reverse engineering to radio telemetry.

Andrew has designed, prototyped and secured systems across defence and agtech. He broadened his security experience through a stint in the trenches as head of cybersecurity for a small engineering company, and most recently builds appsec and vulnerability management programmes in the defence sector.

Chathura Abeydeera

Director, KPMG Australia
Expertise: Red, purple teaming and penetration testing, adversary emulation and simulation, cyber threat intelligence, incident response

Chathura Abeydeera is a director in the forensic practice at KPMG Australia, where he leads cyber attack and response services. He is a highly technical cybersecurity practitioner with over 20 years’ experience in offensive security and incident response.

Chathura is a certified tester and examination assessor for CREST International, and an advisory board member for CREST Australasia. He has delivered complex cybersecurity assessments and incident response engagements for a range of high-profile Australian and global organisations.

Christopher Drake

Director, CryptoPhoto
Expertise: CEH.v10 skills, Govt. PenTest Author, Cipher and bigmath implementations, 40 years industry+business experience (build+market+sell+etc), B.App.Sc-Comp (QUT)

Christopher Drake is a technology leader with 40 years’ experience as a coder, white-hat hacker and speaker. He is the director at CryptoPhoto and has won more than a dozen international awards for innovation and excellence in cyber. Author of the most heavily cited security patent, Christopher has founded multiple cyber businesses, and regularly contributes to government and defence cyber policy and inquiries.

Christopher Gentle

Director, FlatMap IT
Expertise: Consultant Software Engineer with experience in secure remote access technologies, implementing health informatics and warehousing solutions with HIPAA and 21CFR11 compliance. Development of security and integrity safeguard standards with Boston Children’s Hospital, US Food and Drug Administration, and hl7.org.

Christopher Gentle is a consultant, analyst, software developer and Director of Flatmap IT, with more than 30 years’ experience in technical leadership and systems engineering. He has developed integration solutions across industries including telecommunications, banking, healthcare and defence.

Christopher has worked with organisations such as Commonwealth Bank, GEC Marconi, Lucent, Avaya, Boston Children’s Hospital and I-MED Radiology Network. Through Flatmap IT, he works with clients in areas including GIS and carbon farming, clinical research technology, health informatics, healthcare standards, and large-scale imaging and practice management integration.

Daniel Cross

Cybersecurity manager, Tilt Renewables Australia

Daniel Cross is cybersecurity manager at Tilt Renewables, where he leads cybersecurity strategy and initiatives to protect critical infrastructure for a major Australian energy generator. He has over a decade of experience in cybersecurity across a range of domains. Daniel has held roles including regional security operations manager for a global platform-as-a-service provider, and has worked across security engineering, application and cloud security, governance, risk and compliance (GRC), network security, and offensive security.

He has more than 20 years’ experience in technology, starting his career with ISPs in New Zealand, and has also worked in site reliability, Linux and network engineering.

Daniel Rodriguez

Technical analyst, Australian Federal Police
Expertise: Over 10 years' experience in Cyber Crime investigation

Federal Agent Daniel Rodriguez is a technical analyst in cybercrime operations with the Australian Federal Police (AFP) in Melbourne. He joined the AFP in 2002, working across a range of policing roles before moving into cybercrime in 2012, where he spent over eight years as an investigator.

Daniel now provides technical support across cybercrime operations, drawing on his background in IT and experience with multinational organisations. He holds degrees in computer science and electronic engineering. He has worked on complex cybercrime matters including transnational investigations, open source intelligence and incident response, and has a strong interest in emerging technologies and cybersecurity.

Duncan Gray

Principal engineer, OneGuard Consulting
Expertise: Vulnerability management, Essential 8 assessments, remediation works.

Duncan Gray is an IT and cybersecurity professional with over 25 years’ experience in systems and network administration, and security operations. He is principal engineer at OneGuard Consulting. Duncan holds SANS/GIAC GPEN and GCIA certifications and brings deep technical expertise across infrastructure, networks and cybersecurity.

Erica Muir

Corporate fraud investigator, IBM Australia
Expertise: As a practitioner within the Corporation

Erica Muir has experience across telecommunications, aerospace manufacturing, IT communications and professional services. She has held senior roles in corporate internal audits and investigations, fraud, human resources, employment law, performance management, training, and policy review.

Erica is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) with strong skills in business analysis, data examination, interviewing witnesses and suspects, and report writing. She specialises in detecting and investigating employee fraud across organisations in the Asia Pacific region.

Farhan Farooq

Senior solutions architect, Amazon Web Services

Farhan Farooq is a senior solutions architect at AWS, based in Melbourne, with over 20 years’ experience in cybersecurity and cloud technologies. He holds several industry certifications, including CISSP, CISA, CISM, SABSA, GMON and AWS.

Farhan supports organisations in their digital transformation by designing secure, reliable and efficient cloud solutions. He has a background in systems analysis and software development, and a strong interest in machine learning, satellite technologies, and security orchestration and automation. He holds a degree in computing and information systems from London Metropolitan University and an MBA in corporate information management from the University of Southern Queensland.

Francesco (Frank) Schiliro

Lecturer, University of NSW

Frank Schiliro is a lecturer at the University of New South Wales at ADFA. He holds a Master of Research in computing from Macquarie University and is currently a PhD candidate researching secure cognitive augmentation in policing processes. He is also the AI-enabled policing stream leader at Macquarie University’s AI-enabled Processes Research Centre and a senior certified professional with the Australian Computer Society.

Frank is a retired superintendent from the Australian Federal Police, with a 34-year career in policing. He began with the New South Wales Police Force in 1988, working in criminal investigations, before joining the AFP in 2003 and progressing to senior leadership. His work focuses on improving policing effectiveness through the use of information and communication technology (ICT), digital leadership and applied research, with the aim of strengthening practice and public confidence in policing.

Dr Jonathan Oliver

Senior staff data scientist, VMware Carbon Black
Adjunct professor, University of Queensland
Expertise: ML applications. Clustering of security artifacts. Invented TLSH. Antispam.

Dr Jonathan Oliver is a data scientist with over 25 years of industry experience, specialising in machine learning for cybersecurity. He works at VMware, focusing on behavioural analysis and advanced machine learning projects.

Jonathan has worked on a range of machine learning and threat-based initiatives, including systems for anti-spam, web reputation and malware detection. He is the inventor of TLSH (Trend Locality Sensitive Hash), a widely adopted security technology. He holds a PhD from Monash University and is an inventor on more than 100 software patents.

King Salemno

Information assurance development adjudication lead, Booz Allen Hamilton

Expertise: Vulnerability analysis and mitigation. Malware analysis. Identify tactics, techniques and procedures associated with various malware campaigns. Reverse engineering.

King Salemno is a cybersecurity professional with experience across a range of specialised areas within the field. He has developed applications and tools to support both red team and blue team operations. His work includes applied research and solution development, contributing to improved security outcomes across the organisations he has worked with.

Leigh Vincent

Manager of IT security and risk, Federation University Australia
Expertise: 20 years' experience in the cybersecurity industry across the healthcare and higher education sectors.

Leigh Vincent is manager of IT security and risk at Federation University, with nearly 20 years’ experience in cybersecurity at the institution. He has led information security across the University, working with a wide range of threats and evolving technologies. 

Leigh has a strong focus on defence-in-depth strategies, resilience and incident response, taking a proactive approach to managing cyber risk. He holds certifications in incident handling, penetration testing and forensic analysis. He leads a team of security professionals and is focused on building a strong cybersecurity culture through user awareness and education, recognising that effective security is a shared responsibility. His work also includes strategic planning and governance to address emerging threats, regulatory requirements and organisational risk.

Dr Muhammad Ejaz Ahmed

Senior research scientist, CSIRO
Expertise: Malware analysis, threat hunting, ransomware behavioural analysis, software security, and applied machine learning.

Dr Muhammad Ejaz Ahmed is a senior research scientist and team lead for automated security at CSIRO’s Data61, and an honorary senior lecturer at Macquarie University. His research focuses on the intersection of artificial intelligence and cybersecurity. He has worked on projects including ransomware behavioural analysis, threat hunting, software supply chain security, and automated API deobfuscation.

He leads collaborative research initiatives with industry and academic partners in Australia and internationally. His work on ransomware detection and defence against voice replay attacks has been featured in media outlets including Bloomberg and ZDNet.

Negar Shabab

Senior security researcher, Microsoft

Negar Shabab is a senior security researcher at Microsoft, where she works in the threat intelligence community researching emerging threats and improving malware detection. She has over a decade of experience across both offensive and defensive cybersecurity roles, including malware analysis, security software development, application security and penetration testing.

Negar is passionate about sharing her knowledge with industry and academia. She has presented research and delivered workshops at conferences including AISA, AUSCERT, MRE, 0xCC, BSides and the Security Analyst Summit, and has supported students through malware analysis training and hackathon preparation.

Nicolas Puñal

Organisational change management consultant

Nicolas Puñal holds an honours degree from Bristol Business School at the University of the West of England, and has experience across Europe and the United States with organisations including Citibank, Time Warner, Liverpool Victoria and HM Customs & Excise. In Australia, he has worked with the Department of Fair Trading and the NSW Police Force, and has served as a board member for the NSW Community of Change Professionals.

Nicolas specialises in organisational change management within law enforcement, with a focus on investigative technologies, commercial fraud and cybercrime. His work emphasises due diligence, intergovernmental collaboration and effective communication. He is an experienced facilitator, speaker and event organiser, and has delivered change and contract management sessions across Europe and Australia. He has also introduced organisational change management practices to the Catalan Police Force (Mossos d'Esquadra).

Noushin Shabab

Senior security researcher, Kaspersky
Expertise: Threat Intelligence Analysis, Malware Analysis, Reverse Engineering

Noushin Shabab is a cybersecurity researcher specialising in reverse engineering and targeted attack investigations. She is a senior security researcher at Kaspersky’s Global Research and Analysis Team (GReAT), where she focuses on advanced cybercrime and targeted threats, particularly in the Asia Pacific region.
She has experience in malware analysis, security software development, rootkit detection and advanced persistent threat (APT) investigations, gained through both offensive and defensive roles.

Noushin is an active member of the cybersecurity community, regularly presenting at international conferences including Black Hat Asia, AusCERT, Security Analyst Summit, INTERPOL World, Ruxcon, Kawaiicon, MRE and BSides. She has also delivered technical workshops and guest lectures at universities in Australia and internationally, and is a member of the Australian Women in Security Network.

Phil Kalluri

Director, Kalluri IT

Phil Kalluri is the founder of Kalluri IT, an IT services and cybersecurity consultancy based in Ballarat. With over 20 years of experience in the technology industry, he supports small and medium-sized businesses to secure their digital environments and improve efficiency through automation.

Phil specialises in managed IT services, cloud solutions and cybersecurity, with expertise across network administration, endpoint security, compliance and business process automation. He works with clients across healthcare, legal and professional services sectors throughout regional and metropolitan Victoria. He is passionate about making high-quality IT support accessible to regional businesses, combining technical expertise with a focus on clear communication and practical solutions.

Priya Gnanasekaran

Security engineer, Lab3
Expertise: Have hands-on experience in applied cybersecurity by working on various domains like DevSecOps, Security Operations and Infrastructure Security Engineering. As part of the journey, I have got exposure to cutting edge security tools and technologies.

Priya Gnanasekaran is a cybersecurity professional and advocate with experience across DevSecOps, secure coding, infrastructure security and security operations. She is passionate about creating safer digital environments and building awareness of cybersecurity best practices. Priya is an active mentor and speaker, regularly sharing her knowledge at industry and university events. She has a strong interest in emerging technologies, including blockchain and web3.

She is known for her ability to translate complex security risks into practical business solutions, and has experience implementing and optimising security processes across organisations. She holds a postgraduate qualification from the University of Melbourne, where her research focused on detecting DDoS attacks from IoT devices. 

Though she’s passionate about the digital world, in her spare time she enjoys stepping away from it — playing board games and hiking. She lives by the belief that “cyber security is everyone’s responsibility”.

Sabih Saeed

Principal manager in security engineering, Microsoft

Sabih Saeed is an engineering manager with a strong background in IT and a commitment to continuous learning and leadership. He combines technical expertise with strategic insight, supported by a graduate degree in computer science and an MBA in management. With over 17 years of experience in local and international IT services, Sabih has held roles ranging from developer to engineering leader. He is currently a principal manager in security engineering at Microsoft, where he leads a team of customer engineers, provides technical leadership, and manages complex customer engagements and escalations.

Sabih has deep technical experience across cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure, network access, Kubernetes and DevOps, and is passionate about open-source technologies. He also holds a range of certifications from organisations including Microsoft, the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) and the Linux Foundation, reflecting his focus on staying current with industry trends.

Shantanu Kumar

Principal electrical engineer, Asset Integrity
Expertise: Digital Substation Automation – 15 years’ experience. Cybersecurity issues in hacking a digital infrastructure network.

Shantanu Kumar has over 35 years of experience in substation and high- and low-voltage industrial equipment. He is a fellow and chartered engineer with Engineers Australia, and a committee member of the Electrical Energy Society of Australia (WA chapter). He has contributed to a number of industry conferences, including AUPEC 2021, APPEEC 2022 and ISPEC 2022. Shantanu holds a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering and an MBA from India, as well as a Master of Science in engineering from the University of Western Australia. He is currently undertaking a PhD at Curtin University, with research focused on the application of IEC 61850 protocols in substation and high-voltage infrastructure.

Simon McAloon

Technical Lead – Information Systems, Vitrafy Life Sciences
Expertise: Secure software development, DevSecOps, Network and Endpoint including IoT security, IAM, Policy and compliance, Business continuity and disaster recovery, Risk assessment, Threat analysis, Incident response, Cloud security, Medical devices, Blockchain and AI

Simon McAloon has over 20 years of experience in the IT sector, with a focus on cybersecurity across technical support, systems administration, software engineering, consulting and management. He is currently technical lead, Information Systems at Vitrafy Life Sciences, a global biotech start-up based in Ballarat. Cybersecurity is a key focus of his role, supporting both day-to-day operations and research and development. At Vitrafy, Simon has been named as an inventor on two patents in the areas of blockchain and artificial intelligence, both with a strong cybersecurity focus. Prior to this, Simon worked with IBM in development lead roles on projects for Australian businesses, educational institutions and government organisations, where cybersecurity was central to his work.

Simon holds a Bachelor of Technology from RMIT and is currently completing a Master of Data Science at RMIT, alongside an MBA from Federation University. He is an active member of the tech community, contributing to organisations including Blockchain Australia, Linux Australia, the Australian Computer Society and the Hyperledger Foundation.

Dr Tao Ban

Senior researcher, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology
Expertise: Network security, malware analysis, IoT security, machine learning and data mining for cybersecurity

Dr Tao Ban is a senior researcher at the Cybersecurity Research Institute, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) in Tokyo, Japan. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering from Xi’an Jiaotong University, a Master of Engineering from Tsinghua University, and a PhD from Kobe University.
Dr Ban has received numerous awards for his research, including best paper awards at IEEE TrustCom, AsiaJCIS, IEICE CSS, ICONIP and DMAI, as well as recognition for leadership and service in the field.

He has published more than 100 journal and conference papers and book chapters across cybersecurity, machine learning and data mining. His research interests include pattern classification, neural processing, malware analysis, cyber threat hunting, and the application of machine learning to network security. He is a member of IEEE and actively contributes to international conferences, serving on program committees for events including IJCNN, ICONIP, ISNN, FUZZ-IEEE and CEC.

Dr Takuya Yoshihiro

Associate Professor, Wireless Networks and IoT
Expertise: Expertise of Applied Cybersecurity, censorship circumvention, blockchain, digital forensics, privacy-preserving data mining.

Dr Takuya Yoshihiro is an Associate Professor at Wakayama University in Japan. He received his Bachelor of Engineering, Master of Informatics and PhD from Kyoto University in 1998, 2000 and 2003. He previously served as an Assistant Professor at Wakayama University from 2003 to 2009, before being appointed Associate Professor. 

His research interests include graph theory, distributed algorithms, computer and wireless networks, the Internet of Things, network security, intelligent transport systems, data economics and medical applications. Dr Yoshihiro is a member of IEEE, ACM, IEICE and IPSJ.

Tarek Chaalani

Head of security, Spacetalk

Tarek Chaalani is a cybersecurity and AI/ML security specialist focused on building resilient and trustworthy intelligent systems. He is currently head of security at Spacetalk and a PhD candidate at Federation University Australia, working at the intersection of academic research and real-world security engineering.

Tarek has a background in software and systems engineering, with experience across security operations, threat detection, threat intelligence and adversarial machine learning. He has led 24/7 security operations supporting high-profile clients across Australia and New Zealand. His research focuses on the security of AI systems, particularly large language models, including model security, adversarial attacks and AI red teaming. He has also contributed to early-stage ventures as a technical co-founder, working on security solutions for biotech organisations and developing platforms to support security compliance and maturity.

Tarek is an active contributor to the cybersecurity and AI community, regularly presenting at industry events and sharing insights on AI security and defence strategies. His interests include mechanistic interpretability, AI alignment, and advancing secure, transparent and reliable intelligent systems.

Tonio Loewald

Founder, textreceipts.com

Tonio Loewald is a software developer, architect and manager with over 30 years of industry experience. He has worked across a wide range of projects, from children’s games and scientific software to pharmaceutical tools and social media platforms. Throughout his career, Tonio has focused on building systems where security and privacy are key considerations.