Akshay Awasthi
Dallas,Texas
Summary
Security leader with 10+ years of experience building and scaling Data Security, Digital Forensics, Insider Risk, IR, and AI Security programs for global Fortune 500 companies. Certified Digital Forensics Examiner, recognized by the U.S. Department of Defense and acknowledged by USCIS/DHS as an Individual of Extraordinary Ability in Digital Forensics and Data Protection. Proven track record leading global teams across the U.S. and India, delivering enterprise-grade security capabilities, and driving major cost optimizations. Experienced in designing and operationalizing DLP, forensics, AI security, and cyber defense functions under complex regulatory and business environments. Published researcher, eDiscovery-certified, and guest faculty at 50+ engineering institutions specializing in cybersecurity.
Overview
13
13
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Manager, Data and AI Security
Vanguard
06.2023 - Current
- Built and led Vanguard's enterprise Data Security Program , establishing end-to-end capabilities across DLP, data classification, access governance, cloud security controls, and data protection tooling while maturing organizational security posture.
- Recruited, scaled, and managed a 30+-member organization in two years comprised of ICs, leads, and managers, driving high performance through hands-on coaching, structured evaluations, compensation planning, and targeted hiring.
- Founded and operationalized the AI Security & Controls team , enabling secure rollout of AI platforms across the business through policy design, guardrails, model governance, risk assessments, and SOC-readiness.
- Partnered with cross-functional teams—including Engineering, Cloud, Legal, Compliance, IAM, and Risk—to deliver complex security initiatives , removing blockers and accelerating adoption of secure data and AI solutions.
- Implemented operational standards, policies, and procedures that strengthened regulatory readiness, improved audit outcomes, and reduced control fragmentation across data pipelines and AI workflows.
- Achieved ~$7M in year-one savings by consolidating vendors, renegotiating contracts, and eliminating redundant tooling—optimizing operational costs without compromising capability.
- Drove strategic workforce and budget planning , ensuring alignment with business forecasts, product roadmaps, and enterprise security priorities.
- Championed a culture of engineering excellence and accountability , ensuring security controls were measurable, automation-first, and aligned to fintech-grade resilience and customer trust requirements
Global Lead, Data Loss Prevention
Zoom Video Communications
12.2020 - 06.2023
- Built Zoom's global Data Security & DLP program from the ground up , establishing enterprise-grade controls across data protection, insider risk, detection engineering, and incident response.
- Led cross-functional collaboration with IT, Insider Risk, SOC, Detection Engineering, Compliance, and Cloud Engineering teams to deliver unified security capabilities and standardized control coverage across the organization.
- Established technical controls and detection frameworks for Insider Risk and DLP-related threats, enabling proactive identification, triage, and remediation of high-risk behaviors across SaaS and cloud environments.
- Scaled and mentored a high-impact team , driving skill development, operational discipline, and ownership of core data protection functions.
- Designed and implemented operational procedures to strengthen organizational loss prevention posture, reduce data misuse risk, and standardize response actions across global teams.
- Achieved ~$10M+ in cost savings over two years by streamlining tooling, eliminating redundant platforms, and optimizing vendor and operational spend—significantly improving security ROI.
- Drove continuous operational maturity , ensuring that DLP, insider threat, and detection capabilities aligned with business growth, regulatory expectations, and FEDRAMP grade security requirements.
Principal, Incident Response
Zoom Video Communications
10.2020 - 03.2022
- Designed, piloted, and operationalized Zoom's global Incident Response (IR) program , establishing enterprise-wide processes, tooling, and governance to support rapid detection, containment, and remediation of security incidents.
- Led an 18-month strategic assignment in India to build Zoom's entire India Cyber Defense function , standing up integrated SOC, Incident Response, Detection Engineering, Threat Intelligence, and Data Security teams to support global coverage and operational resiliency.
- Scaled IR capabilities across the U.S. and India , standardizing playbooks, building regional staffing models, and enabling 24/7 incident response readiness across geographies.
- Optimized global IR operations through strategic hiring, vendor alignment, and process streamlining, improving response efficiency and reducing operational overhead.
- Executed full-spectrum incident lifecycle activities , including remote and physical evidence collection, chain of custody management, forensic investigations, root-cause analysis, reporting, and executive-level briefings.
- Designed, deployed, and led operations for endpoint forensics and data discovery platforms , enhancing forensic visibility and accelerating threat detection and investigation timelines.
- Collaborated cross-functionally with SOC, Legal, Privacy, Internal Audit, HR, Risk & Compliance, and Executive Leadership , ensuring coordinated incident handling and compliance with regulatory and litigation standards.
- Drove continuous maturity of global IR and forensic practices , elevating incident readiness, internal audit posture, and organizational resilience during a period of rapid company growth and scaling.
Global Lead, Cyber Investigations
The Estée Lauder Companies
04.2018 - 10.2020
- Design, roll-out, and manage the pilot forensics program for ELC
- This covers remote and physical global evidence acquisition, chain of custody, investigations, analysis, report, and presentation
- Design, roll-out, and supervise the new EDiscovery program
- Led the technical aspects of ELC's data classification program
- Design, deploy and oversee the operations of endpoint forensics tools and data discovery
- Design, roll-out, and manage the technical controls for the pilot Insider Risk and DLP program at ELC
- This includes POCs, Data Inventory, implementation of technical controls, policy, and forensic investigations
- Requires regular work with SOC, Legal, Privacy, Internal Audit, HR, Risk and Compliance, and Executive Management teams.
- Successfully managed budgets and allocated resources to maximize productivity and profitability.
- Established team priorities, maintained schedules and monitored performance.
Research Lead
IoT Forensics Lab, Norwich University
06.2016 - 12.2017
- Design and supervise the operations of Norwich's pilot IoT Forensics Lab
- Assist students with research projects
- Conduct research in the realm of IoT security and forensics.
CEO
Authentic Techs
06.2013 - 05.2016
- Delivered training and Seminars on Ethical Hacking and Cyber Security in various institutions across India and online in USA
- Trained 10,000 personnel, including students, research scholars, and industry professionals from Microsoft, Intel, Wells Fargo, etc.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Cyber Forensics
Norwich University
Northfield, VT12.2017
Bachelor Of Computer Applications - Computer Science
Birla Institute Of Technology
Mesra, India05.2016
Timeline
Senior Manager, Data and AI Security
Vanguard
06.2023 - Current
Global Lead, Data Loss Prevention
Zoom Video Communications
12.2020 - 06.2023
Principal, Incident Response
Zoom Video Communications
10.2020 - 03.2022
Global Lead, Cyber Investigations
The Estée Lauder Companies
04.2018 - 10.2020
Research Lead
IoT Forensics Lab, Norwich University
06.2016 - 12.2017
CEO
Authentic Techs
06.2013 - 05.2016
Bachelor of Science - Cyber Forensics
Norwich University
Bachelor Of Computer Applications - Computer Science
Birla Institute Of Technology
Awards
- Individual of Extraordinary Ability in FORENSICS, Data Protection, and Incident Response, Department of Homeland Security United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, 10/2022
- Estée Lauder Information Technology Excellence Award, The EstéeLauderCompanies, 04/2020
- Presidential Fellow, Norwich University, 12/2017
- Commendation Letter, United States Senate, 03/2017
- National Champion, Peer2Peer Challenging Extremism, Department of Homeland Security
Publications
- Welcome pwn: Almond Smart Home Hub Forensics, 02/2017
- Botnets: Can We Fight Them?, 06/2018
- Impact of Multifactor Authentication on Identity Theft, 03/2016
- Reducing Identity Theft Using One-Time Password and SMS, 09/2015
- Mitigating Cybercrime and Identity Theft
Public Speaking
- ATAC Boston, 05/2015
- Embassy of Macedonia
- NRIG Intelligence Conference
- Department of Homeland Security
- Federal Bureau of Investigation
- The White House
- Digital Forum on Terrorism
- German Cyber Security ROA
- United States Senate Prevention Conference
- Eisenhower Executive Building
- Indian Army
Awards
- Individual of Extraordinary Ability in FORENSICS, Data Protection, and Incident Response, Department of Homeland Security United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, 10/2022
- Estée Lauder Information Technology Excellence Award, The EstéeLauderCompanies, 04/2020
- Presidential Fellow, Norwich University, 12/2017
- Commendation Letter, United States Senate, 03/2017
- National Champion, Peer2Peer Challenging Extremism, Department of Homeland Security
Publications
- Welcome pwn: Almond Smart Home Hub Forensics, 02/2017
- Botnets: Can We Fight Them?, 06/2018
- Impact of Multifactor Authentication on Identity Theft, 03/2016
- Reducing Identity Theft Using One-Time Password and SMS, 09/2015
- Mitigating Cybercrime and Identity Theft
Skills
Core Leadership & Executive Skills
- Cybersecurity Leadership & Strategy
- Cross-Functional Executive Collaboration
- Global Team Building & Scaling (US India)
- Organizational Development & Change Management
- Strategic Planning & Roadmapping
- Budgeting, Forecasting & Cost Optimization
- Vendor Management & Contract Negotiation
- Performance Management & Talent Development
- Executive Reporting & Board-Level Communication
- Enterprise Data Security Program Design
- Data Loss Prevention (DLP) Architecture
- Data Classification & Taxonomy Development
- Data Governance & Access Controls
- Cloud Data Protection (SaaS, Cloud, Hybrid)
- Insider Risk Management
- Sensitive Data Discovery & Inventory
- Data Protection Policies & Standards
- AI/GenAI Security Controls
- Model Risk Assessments & Guardrails
- SOC-Readiness for AI Platforms
- AI Governance Framework Implementation
- Global Incident Response (IR) Program Design
- Threat Detection & Engineering
- SOC Leadership & Playbook Development
- Threat Intelligence Integration
- 24/7 Global Readiness & Operations
- IR Governance, Root-Cause Analysis & Reporting
- Digital Forensics (Endpoint, Network, Cloud)
- Global Evidence Acquisition (Remote Physical)
- Chain of Custody & Forensic Procedures
- Forensic Tooling Deployment & Operations
- eDiscovery Program Development
- Insider Threat Investigations
- IoT Forensics & Emerging Tech Analysis
- Endpoint Forensics Platforms
- Data Discovery & Classification Tools
- SaaS Security & Cloud-native Controls
- Detection Engineering Frameworks
- Automation-first Control Engineering
- Security Architecture for Enterprise AI Workflows
- Program Design & Rollout (DLP, IR, Insider Risk, eDiscovery)
- Policy Development & Regulatory Alignment
- Audit & Compliance Readiness
- Operational Process Optimization
- Security Tool Consolidation & ROI Maximization
- Published Cybersecurity Research (Peer-reviewed)
- Research Review Panelist — Cogent OA
- Distinguished Guest Faculty (50 Engineering Institutions)
- Recognized by US DoD
- USCIS/DHS “Individual of Extraordinary Ability” (Forensics & Data Protection)