About Us

Tom Byrnes is a long-standing member of the global cybersecurity community, serving in the U.S. Army for 13 years and ultimately joining the seminal tactical networking group.  In the private sector Toms work started with designing large-scale global networks, and providing technical advice and leadership for a number of successful startups that all resulted in successful acquisitions. Tom holds four patents in network security using DNS, and is credited as the inventor on two additional patent applications. An active member of the IEEE, ISSA and Infragard, Byrnes speaks regularly at conferences on the topic of security.

Ever the adventurer, Tom dives, surfs and hikes around ThreatSTOP's HQ in beautiful North County San Diego, and takes advantage of down time on business travel to learn about the local culture and make friends, which he is blessed with all over the world. 

Mockapetris is the inventor of Domain Name System (DNS). His mission is to help guide DNS and IP addressing to the next stage. His earliest work at UC Irvine on distributed systems and LAN technology preceded the commercial Ethernet and Token Ring designs. At ISI, after working on the design and initial implementation of the SMTP protocol for email as part of the birth of the Internet in 1983, he took on the challenge of designing DNS, and then operated the original “root servers” for all Internet names.

When not inventing new ways for the internet to communicate, Paul enjoys tennis and wine, sometimes both together.

Nicko has over 18 years of diverse experience in engineering management, software development, internet application development, and computer networking. He has particular expertise in Unix and TCP/IP, web applications, cloud computing, and platform/software as a service (PaaS/SaaS). Before joining ThreatStop, Nicko was Vice-President of Engineering at Phone.com and Director of Software Development at Bridgepoint Education, and St. Bernard Software/Edgewave. He holds a M.S. in Computer Science from EPITA (Paris, France).

When not coding or hiking with his family, Nicko is a heavy metal roadie, attending over 90 Iron Maiden shows (and singing backup vocals on a few).

Steve Wallace is an entrepreneurial technologist with 30 years of hands-on experience in data security, network design, technical operations, and cloud computing. Prior to joining ThreatSTOP, Wallace was the CTO of AIS Data Centers (now Infinit). He has held senior technology leadership roles including CTO at ComplexDrive Data Centers, President and CTO at cari.net, and founder and VP of Engineering at American Digital Network. Wallace served in the U.S. Navy and holds a BSc in Computer Engineering.

Joel Esler has been a formidable presence in the cybersecurity domain for over twenty years, embodying roles that showcase his deep-seated expertise in leadership, technology, and security operations. His career journey illuminates his exceptional skill in areas such as network security analysis, intrusion detection systems, and security strategy development.

In 2023, Joel embarked on a new chapter with ThreatSTOP as the Vice President of Security, Intelligence, and Research. In this capacity, he is at the helm of a vibrant team, pushing the boundaries of research and innovation, and bolstering the company’s standing in the global cybersecurity arena.

As a founding member of Cisco Talos, Joel marked a period of significant contribution, where he oversaw more than thirty security-focused open-source initiatives include Snort and ClamAV, two of the largest open-source security products on the market. In his capacity as Senior Manager of the Communities Division, he not only championed open-source initiatives but also led areas such as marketing, web development, education, and design.

Joel Esler is driven by a relentless pursuit of innovation, education, and community involvement. His dedication and forward-thinking approach continue to enrich the cybersecurity landscape, establishing him as a distinguished leader in a dynamic and challenging field.

Francis Turner is currently ThreatSTOP's senior representative in the Far East. He has worked for ThreatSTOP for over a decade and prior to this position he was ThreatSTOP's VP Product Management and then VP Security Research. In these past roles he developed ThreatSTOP's current DNS Defense product and many of the techniques used behind the scenes for all products. One of these methods has in fact received a US Patent. As part of his Security Research responsibilities he has been instrumental in identifying early BEC schemes such as the "Vistaprint" related scams as well as participating in industry efforts to characterize and then take down various botnets such as Kelihos and Fluxxy.

Tom Byrnes is a long-standing member of the global cybersecurity community, serving in the U.S. Army for 13 years and ultimately joining the seminal tactical networking group.  In the private sector Toms work started with designing large-scale global networks, and providing technical advice and leadership for a number of successful startups that all resulted in successful acquisitions. Tom holds two patents in network security using DNS, and is credited as the inventor on two additional patent applications. An active member of the IEEE, ISSA and Infragard, Byrnes speaks regularly at conferences on the topic of security.

Ever the adventurer, Tom is an off-road racing enthusiast and was part of the JCR/Honda team that won seven Baja 1000 races in a row from 2007 to 2014. When not on the road securing the world or seeking the unknown, Byrnes lives in North San Diego County with his wife, two sons, and their rescue dog.

Tom Bennett is a 26 year veteran startup entrepreneur with a track record of taking disruptive, venture-backed startups from concept to market leadership. Tom has previously held high Department of Defense security clearance and has worked with multiple agencies on national cybersecurity defense issues. Tom has also worked for multiple incubator venture groups and is a mentor to several startup CEOs. He also serves on the board of directors for ICS cybersecurity startup Dragos, and was previously on the board of directors for Cylance and Cybersponse, also serving as Executive Chairman for Veracity Industrial Networks. He holds an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Tom is also Co-Founder of outdoor tools company DMOS Collective, works ski patrol at Park City Mountain, and has completed 2.75 Molokai2Oahu paddleboard races (ask him about sea turtle collisions).

Mockapetris is the inventor of the Domain Name System (DNS). His mission is to help guide DNS and IP addressing to the next stage. His earliest work at UC Irvine on distributed systems and LAN technology preceded the commercial Ethernet and Token Ring designs. At ISI, after working on the design and initial implementation of the SMTP protocol for email as part of the birth of the Internet in 1983, he took on the challenge of designing DNS, and then operated the original “root servers” for all Internet names.

When not inventing new ways for the internet to communicate, Paul enjoys tennis and wine, sometimes both together.

Winn Schwartau is one of the world's top experts and authors on security, privacy, infowar and cyber-terrorism.

As Chief Research Officer for the SANS Institute, Johannes is currently responsible for the SANS Internet Storm Center (ISC) and the GIAC Gold program.

Senior executive with over 30 years of professional leadership experience in national, homeland, and cyber security.

Chad Loeven is an experienced cybersecurity exec and entrepreneur who has built out sales, marketing, alliances and channels for multiple security companies (like Silicium (RSA), Sunbelt (GFI) and TransientX (Deloitte))  through to successful exits.