Hector Cruz Platon

Dynamic professional with experience in automotive cybersecurity and network security education. As a Doctoral Researcher at Colorado Technical University, I developed the Vehicle Security Improvement Framework, enhancing lifecycle cyber risk management. Proficient in threat modeling and thematic analysis, I excel in collaborative environments, driving impactful research and innovative solutions.

• Member, IEEE Vehicular Technology Society
• Member, Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
• Member, ACM Special Interest Group on Security, Audit and Control (SIGSAC)

• Automotive Cybersecurity Framework Development, Design and validation of holistic, lifecycle-oriented security frameworks for Vehicular Ad-Hoc Networks (VANETs) and Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) systems, with a specialization in hardening Basic Safety Message (BSM) protocols against spoofing, denial-of-service, and false data injection attacks.
• Security Governance & Standards for Connected Vehicles, Investigation of policy, regulatory, and organizational strategies to institutionalize 'security-by-design' principles within automotive manufacturing and public transit authorities. Focuses on the practical application of standards (e.g., NIST, ISO/SAE 21434, NHTSA best practices) to manage cyber risk throughout the vehicle lifecycle.
• Qualitative Analysis of Security Posture & Improvement, Employing thematic analysis and expert elicitation to identify critical vulnerabilities, human factors, and organizational barriers in securing safety-critical automotive informatics systems, translating findings into actionable frameworks for industry practice.

• Qualitative & Mixed-Methods Research, Expertise in exploratory qualitative research design, including semi-structured interview protocols, thematic analysis using ATLAS.ti and NVivo software, and coding methodologies (e.g., In Vivo, axial coding) to derive actionable frameworks from subject matter expert data.
• Vehicular Network Security & Standards, In-depth knowledge of V2X communication protocols (SAE J2735 BSM, IEEE 1609.2, DSRC), automotive cybersecurity standards (ISO/SAE 21434, NHTSA best practices), and security frameworks (NIST CSF, SOC 2) for connected vehicle ecosystems.
• Threat Modeling & Risk Assessment, Proficient in applying threat modeling methodologies (e.g., STRIDE) and conducting vulnerability/risk assessment programs specific to Vehicle Ad Hoc Networks (VANETs) and safety-critical systems like the Basic Safety Message (BSM) system. Tools used for simulation are the following: OMNeT++, SUMO, Veins. Tools used for ML are the following: Python, scikit-learn, and TensorFlow.
• Security Framework & Policy Development, Demonstrated ability to synthesize research findings into practical, institutional security improvement frameworks (VSIF), focusing on lifecycle risk management, secure-by-design principles, and incident response planning for automotive and transit authority organizations.

• Platon, H.C. (2024, Nov). Augmenting Airworthiness Education via Concept Maps: An Exploratory Study among University Students. SAE International Journal of Aerospace., https://doi.org/10.4271/01-18-01-0001
• Platon, H.C. (2024, Nov). Evaluation of Occupant Injury Risk in a Transport Aircraft Crash Test Environment. SAE International Journal of Commercial Vehicles., https://doi.org/10.4271/02-18-02-0011

• Colorado Tech Doctoral Research Fellowship, 2017-2023
• Georgetown University Graduate Merit Scholarship, 2015-2016
• Summa Cum Laude, Bachelor's Degree, 2015
• National Cyber League Competition, Top 10% Individual Finish, 2014

• Platon, H.C. (2023, Feb). Exploring Vehicle Security Improvement Framework in the Safety Messaging System to Protect Against Hackers. ProQuest Dissertations & Theses.
• Platon, H.C. (2023, Feb). Exploring Vehicle Security Improvement Framework in the Safety Messaging System to Protect Against Hackers. Grin Verlag, ISBN-13: 9783346910257.
• Platon, H.C. (2023, Feb). Exploring Vehicle Security Improvement Framework in the Safety Messaging System to Protect Against Hackers. International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research., https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2023.v05i05.4931

• Dr. Kelly Hughes
• Dr. Jeffrey Butler
• Dr. Abdullah Alshboul

• Doctoral Researcher and Primary Investigator, Vehicle Security Lab, Colorado Technical University, 2017 – 2023, Designed and executed a multi-phase qualitative study exploring security frameworks for Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) safety messaging systems (Basic Safety Messages). Developed the research protocol, secured IRB approval, and recruited a panel of 6 subject matter experts (SMEs) from public transit authorities, automotive cybersecurity, and cloud network providers., Conducted in-depth thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews using ATLAS.ti and NVivo software. Identified 5 core thematic pillars through analysis of expert interviews, forming the basis for the Vehicle Security Improvement Framework (VSIF), focusing on lifecycle cyber risk management, secure-by-design engineering, and institutionalizing security standards (e.g., NIST, ISO/SAE 21434)., Authored and defended dissertation presenting a novel, actionable framework for automotive manufacturers and transit authorities. Findings were synthesized into three major practice implications for securing vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) against external cyber threats, contributing directly to the field of automotive informatics security.
• Graduate Research Assistant, Center for Secure IT, Georgetown University, 2015 – 2016, Assisted in a DARPA-funded project on resilient network architectures, focusing on traffic analysis., Authored threat assessment reports for critical infrastructure communication protocols.