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Dave Kennedy

Dave Kennedy

Keynote Speaker: Founder of Binary Defense & TrustedSec

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    Live Event Fee: $20,000 - $30,000
    Virtual Event Fee: $10,000 - $20,000
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Dave Kennedy Biography

Dave Kennedy is on a mission to advance the cybersecurity industry on a global scale. As Binary Defense Co-Founder and Chief Hacking Officer, his experience and expertise guide cybersecurity solutions, including the development of proprietary managed detection and response technology. Named one of the Top 10 IT Security Influencers in the World by CISO Platform, Kennedy has more than 20 years of experience in the security industry.

Prior to forming Binary Defense, Kennedy founded TrustedSec, an information security consulting company located in Fairlawn, Ohio. The company specializes in attack simulations with a focus on strategic risk management. Kennedy previously worked as the Chief Security Officer for Diebold Incorporated, an international Fortune 1000 company, where he developed a global security program that handled all aspects of information security and risk management.

Before his work in the private sector, Kennedy served in the United States Marine Corps, and he made two tours in Iraq. He specialized in cyber warfare and forensics analysis activities for the U.S. intelligence community.

As an author and creator of several open-source tools, Kennedy has made his mark on the cybersecurity industry. He was a founding member of the Penetration Testing Execution Standard, which has been adopted by the Payment Card Industry and the Data Security Standard Guidelines for Penetration Testing. He co-authored "Metasploit: The Penetration Tester's Guide" and co-created the Penetration Testing Execution Standard. He created the Social Engineer Toolkit, the PenTesters Framework, the Magic Unicorn Exploitation Framework, Artillery, and Fast-Track.

Kennedy has appeared as a guest on multiple news networks, including Fox News, CNN, CNBC, and MSNBC. His tools have also been featured on the History Channel and the popular USA Network television series Mr. Robot, where he assisted with content.

As a recognized leader in the industry, Kennedy has presented at international security conferences, including Microsoft’s Bluehat, DEF CON, Blackhat, and Grace Hopper. He is also the co-founder of DerbyCon, a nine-year-old large-scale security conference in Louisville, Kentucky.

In addition to his formal achievements, Kennedy donates his time and wisdom by speaking with civic leaders and students about the importance of security. Bedford High School, Kennedy’s alma mater, named its Kennedy Center for Gaming and Leadership in his honor.

Contact a speaker booking agent to check availability on Dave Kennedy and other top speakers and celebrities.

Dave Kennedy Speaking Topics

Abnormal Behavior Detection in Large Environments

Attack patterns are something that when it occurs is extrinsic (not natural) behavior in a infrastructure. Understanding what attack patterns look like and building an understanding of how to detect them with what you already have is possible. Most preventative technology tries in some extent to detect extrinsic behavior in an environment but falls short because of the continual changes in attack patterns and commoditized detection (sigs, etc). This talk dives into looking at what you already have in your infrastructure that you can use for intrinsic (natural) detection capabilities that doesn't rely on a specific signature, but more so on how attackers go after an organization. As an industry, we need to be detecting the extrinsic occurrences in our networks which exhibit abnormal behavior. During this presentation, we'll be covering a large percentage of techniques used by attackers, and how to detect them with what you currently have in place at your organization today.

Compromise Analysis – Why we’re seeing so many breaches.

After looking at a number of compromises dating the past several years, there are a number of commonalities between each of them and steps that could have been used to prevent. Information security isn't a practice that will always be successful in defending however, there are key indicators of compromise to look for when an attacker is attempting to compromise an organization. During this presentation, we’ll analyze a number of data breaches and look at how a number of the breaches have occurred and how an information security program can be structured in order to defend against a lot of the attacks. Most of the causes are directly related to the human element and directly phishing. This talk will dive into how phishing techniques work, and what you can do to prevent this from happening in the future.

Building Defense on Known Good

There's so much to do. There's not enough people. We can only do what we can based on risk, people, politics, and budget. All common things we share across each organization. This presentation dives into how to focus on building defenses against attacks, staying ahead of the methods, and focusing on known good vs. the rest. You'll leave this talk with a way to think about defense and a way to tackle the issues we face in security today.

The Hacking Age

Attackers are continuously figuring out new methods to gain access to computer systems and enterprises. Everything from Ransomware to targeted and precise attacks aimed at intellectual property theft, monetary gain, or other motives. In today’s age of hacking, it’s never been more important to understand who the hackers are and the methods they use to attack organizations. In this talk, we go into the demographics of hackers, how they are hacking, and the best defenses both from a personal perspective as well as an enterprise. It’s possible to withstand the attacks we see today with proven practices, but it requires hard work, and an understanding of who your adversaries are.

Moving Ahead and Beyond Common Tool Detections

There’s no question that companies continue to try and get better when it comes to detecting attacks in multiple phases. Instead of just patching and hoping for the best, organizations are spending a substantial amount of investment in trying to detect the “well what if they get through” situation. As companies focus on enhanced detection capabilities, the focus is often hard to grasp in what to actually look for – there is so much. This talk will dive into where we see most companies fail at detection and how red teams are helping push the bar forward in not just leveraging a checklist, but focusing on the identification of attack patterns in varying levels of sophistication. The over reliance on technology as a method for trying to jump start these programs often causes more harm than good, and we’ll dive into how effective off the shelf endpoint detection tools do when confronted with even basic attackers. As an industry, we have everything we need to get better – it’s a matter of prioritization, focus, and time.

Dave Kennedy Videos

Meet Dave Kennedy – Chief Hacking Officer, Binary Defense
Exploits, Research, Tools, and the Impact to Security | Dave Kennedy
Dave Kennedy, TrustedSec - Business Security Weekly #116 ...

How do I book Dave Kennedy to speak at my event?

Our experienced booking agents have successfully helped clients around the world secure speakers like Dave Kennedy for speaking engagements, personal appearances, product endorsements, or corporate entertainment since 2002. Click the Check Schedule button above and complete the form on this page to check availability for Dave Kennedy, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to discuss your upcoming event. One of our experienced agents will be happy to help you get speaking fee information and check availability for Dave Kennedy or any other speaker of your choice.

How much does it cost to book Dave Kennedy for a speaking engagement?

Speaking fees for Dave Kennedy, or any other speakers and celebrities, are determined based on a number of factors and may change without notice. The estimated fees to book Dave Kennedy are $20,000 - $30,000 for live events and $10,000 - $20,000 for virtual events. For the most current speaking fee to hire Dave Kennedy, click the Check Schedule button above and complete the form on this page, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to speak directly with an experienced booking agent.

What topics does Dave Kennedy speak about?

Dave Kennedy is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics such as Cybersecurity, Security & Defense and Technology.

Where does Dave Kennedy travel from?

Dave Kennedy generally travels from Strongsville, OH, USA and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances.

Who is the agent for Dave Kennedy?

AAE Speakers Bureau has successfully secured keynote speakers like Dave Kennedy for clients worldwide since 2002. As a full-service speaker booking agency, we have access to virtually any speaker or celebrity in the world. Our agents are happy and able to submit an offer to the speaker or celebrity of your choice, letting you benefit from our reputation and long-standing relationships in the industry. Please click the Check Schedule button above and complete the form on this page including the details of your event, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536, and one of our agents will assist you to book Dave Kennedy for your next private or corporate function.

What is a full-service speaker booking agency?

AAE Speakers Bureau is a full-service speaker booking agency, meaning we can completely manage the speaker’s or celebrity’s engagement with your organization from the time of booking your speaker through the event’s completion. We provide all of the services you need to host Dave Kennedy or any other speaker of your choice, including offer negotiation, contractual assistance, accounting and billing, and event speaker travel and logistics services. When you book a speaker with us, we manage the process of hosting a speaker for you as an extension of your team. Our goal is to give our clients peace of mind and a best-in-class service experience when booking a speaker with us.

Why is AAE Speakers Bureau different from other booking agencies?

If you’re looking for the best speaker recommendations, paired with a top-notch customer service experience, you’re in the right place. At AAE Speakers Bureau, we exclusively represent the interests of our clients - professional organizations, companies, universities, and associations. We intentionally do not represent the speakers we feature or book. That is so we can present our clients with the broadest and best performing set of speaker options in the market today, and we can make these recommendations without any obligation to promote a specific speaker over another. This is why when our agents suggest a speaker for your event, you can be assured that they are of the highest quality with a history of proven success with our other clients.


Dave Kennedy is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics including Cybersecurity, Security & Defense and Technology. The estimated speaking fee range to book Dave Kennedy for live events is $20,000 - $30,000, and for virtual events $10,000 - $20,000. Dave Kennedy generally travels from Strongsville, OH, USA and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Dr. Eric Cole, Rachel Tobac and Scott Augenbaum. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Dave Kennedy for an upcoming event.

Dave Kennedy Speaking Topics

  • Abnormal Behavior Detection in Large Environments

    Attack patterns are something that when it occurs is extrinsic (not natural) behavior in a infrastructure. Understanding what attack patterns look like and building an understanding of how to detect them with what you already have is possible. Most preventative technology tries in some extent to detect extrinsic behavior in an environment but falls short because of the continual changes in attack patterns and commoditized detection (sigs, etc). This talk dives into looking at what you already have in your infrastructure that you can use for intrinsic (natural) detection capabilities that doesn't rely on a specific signature, but more so on how attackers go after an organization. As an industry, we need to be detecting the extrinsic occurrences in our networks which exhibit abnormal behavior. During this presentation, we'll be covering a large percentage of techniques used by attackers, and how to detect them with what you currently have in place at your organization today.

  • Compromise Analysis – Why we’re seeing so many breaches.

    After looking at a number of compromises dating the past several years, there are a number of commonalities between each of them and steps that could have been used to prevent. Information security isn't a practice that will always be successful in defending however, there are key indicators of compromise to look for when an attacker is attempting to compromise an organization. During this presentation, we’ll analyze a number of data breaches and look at how a number of the breaches have occurred and how an information security program can be structured in order to defend against a lot of the attacks. Most of the causes are directly related to the human element and directly phishing. This talk will dive into how phishing techniques work, and what you can do to prevent this from happening in the future.

  • Building Defense on Known Good

    There's so much to do. There's not enough people. We can only do what we can based on risk, people, politics, and budget. All common things we share across each organization. This presentation dives into how to focus on building defenses against attacks, staying ahead of the methods, and focusing on known good vs. the rest. You'll leave this talk with a way to think about defense and a way to tackle the issues we face in security today.

  • The Hacking Age

    Attackers are continuously figuring out new methods to gain access to computer systems and enterprises. Everything from Ransomware to targeted and precise attacks aimed at intellectual property theft, monetary gain, or other motives. In today’s age of hacking, it’s never been more important to understand who the hackers are and the methods they use to attack organizations. In this talk, we go into the demographics of hackers, how they are hacking, and the best defenses both from a personal perspective as well as an enterprise. It’s possible to withstand the attacks we see today with proven practices, but it requires hard work, and an understanding of who your adversaries are.

  • Moving Ahead and Beyond Common Tool Detections

    There’s no question that companies continue to try and get better when it comes to detecting attacks in multiple phases. Instead of just patching and hoping for the best, organizations are spending a substantial amount of investment in trying to detect the “well what if they get through” situation. As companies focus on enhanced detection capabilities, the focus is often hard to grasp in what to actually look for – there is so much. This talk will dive into where we see most companies fail at detection and how red teams are helping push the bar forward in not just leveraging a checklist, but focusing on the identification of attack patterns in varying levels of sophistication. The over reliance on technology as a method for trying to jump start these programs often causes more harm than good, and we’ll dive into how effective off the shelf endpoint detection tools do when confronted with even basic attackers. As an industry, we have everything we need to get better – it’s a matter of prioritization, focus, and time.

Dave Kennedy Videos

Meet Dave Kennedy – Chief Hacking Officer, Binary Defense
Exploits, Research, Tools, and the Impact to Security | Dave Kennedy
Dave Kennedy, TrustedSec - Business Security Weekly #116 ...
GrrCon 2018 Augusta00 Keynote Dave Kennedy - YouTube
TrustedSec CEO David Kennedy on The Katie Couric Show - YouTube

Dave Kennedy Reviews

  • The AAE Team did a great job communicating with me and always responded within the day! We initially had some trouble locking down a speaker and they were extremely helpful and responsive throughout what was a bit of a stressful process. Dave did a great job at the presentation and we have gotten very positive feedback on his speech from our event attendees.
    AE Business Solutions - Mar 02 2020

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