Employee Spotlight: Q&A with Cybersecurity Expert Michael Kannan

Currently, I am the Director of IT Assurance and Security Research at GraVoc. I am responsible for performing in-depth, technical analysis for many of our engagements, particularly in the areas of external penetration testing, internal network vulnerability assessment, web application testing, wireless assessment, and other IT assurance testing.

I have a B.S. in Computer Networking and Information Systems from Wentworth Institute of Technology and an M.S. in Information Assurance from Brandeis University.

Further, I hold the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) designation through (ISC) 2, the Certified Ethical Hacker (C|EH) version 7 certification through the EC Council, and Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP) certification. I have also completed several courses in wireless security and web application testing.

Years ago, as wireless was growing in popularity, I had the opportunity to perform a security test on a wireless network with a large antenna from a client’s parking lot.

I was able to see their wireless network from a distance, which helped me uncover a weak encryption setting. From there, I was able to crack the key, join the wireless network, see additional machines on the same network, exploit one of these machines, and ultimately gain full access to the entire network. The client was surprised to see that someone from a parking lot could compromise their entire network. This led us to further assisting with all the gaps we found to protect against malicious actors in the future.

To this date, we have performed various other types of exercises for this client, building an even stronger relationship over the years!

Outside of work, which is actually a hobby, I am usually researching new topics that interest me, such as the upcoming AI scene. Other than that, you will find me on the golf course, always telling myself it’s a practice round!

My team! First of all, I can’t do this job without my team. If one of us is stuck, we pool our minds together and bounce ideas off each other so we can provide the best value to our customers. Second thing I enjoy is working with clients across multiple industries and using a wide array of technologies.

I’d say my ideal foursome would be Tiger Woods, John Daly, and Michael Jordan!

Use multifactor authentication (MFA) wherever possible because passwords aren’t enough these days.