Prof. Howard A. Schmidt, CISSP, CISM (Hon.), former White House Cyber Security Advisor, is currently the Security Strategist for (ISC)², the global leader in information security education and certification, commentating on the most pressing information security topics for the organisation.

A noted speaker and author, Schmidt has had a long and distinguished career in defense, law enforcement and corporate security spanning almost 40 years. Besides having served as a cyber security advisor to the White House, he has also been vice president, chief information security officer and chief security strategist for eBay, and chief security officer for Microsoft. He most recently served in the position of chief security strategist for the US CERT Partners Program for the National Cyber Security Division, Department of Homeland Security.

Schmidt holds a bachelor's degree in business administration (BSBA) and a master's degree in organisational management (MAOM) from the University of Phoenix. He also holds an Honorary Doctorate degree in Humane Letters. Schmidt is a Professor of Practice at GA Tech, GTISC, Professor of Research at Idaho State University and Adjunct Senior Fellow with Carnegie Mellon's CyLab.