Blackphone Appoints Daniel Ford, D.Sc. as Chief Security Officer

GENEVA, July 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- SGP Technologies SA, the Switzerland-based joint venture of Silent Circle and Geeksphone behind Blackphone, today announced the appointment of Daniel Ford, D.Sc. (Twitter: @netsecrex) as its Chief Security Officer. Dr. Ford brings over fifteen years of information security and risk management experience, including an extensive history running security programs within the U.S. federal government and startups focused on the mobile security industry.

As Chief Security Officer, Dr. Ford will utilize his experience in information security, data loss prevention, endpoint security, and policy governance to ensure that the Blackphone platform continues to address the growing set of security threats and vulnerabilities associated with mobile devices.

Prior to joining Blackphone, Dr. Ford led security teams and programs at Fixmo, where he invented new methodology for detecting malicious activity on mobile devices, and guided Fixmo to receive their FIPS 140-2 certifications (#1996 & #2087). He also worked at McAfee, Nominum, BAE Systems, SRA, and Unisys, where he held the position of Director of Network Security on the ITMS program. During his career to date, Ford created the first approved Enterprise Security Architecture and strategy for eAuthentication for the U.S. Department of Energy and re-architected the security system for a logistics program within the U.S. Army. In May of 2014, Dr. Ford graduated from Capitol College with a Doctor of Science in Information Assurance where his dissertation focused on the risks associated with smartphones in the enterprise. 

"Dan perfectly fits the profile for what we need in a CSO. He's an accomplished and published researcher on mobile security. He's a skilled practitioner for operational security and incident response.  And he's a personable, approachable expert. Our customers will see a lot of Dan as he ramps up our incident response and vulnerability management practices, and I'm sure they'll soon realize they're in great hands!" said Toby Weir-Jones, CEO of SGP Technologies.  

"In my experience, companies with a strong CSO who champions security not only for the company, but for the customers, can deliver better products with end-user security in mind from the beginning," said Mike Kershaw, Chief Architect of SGP Technologies. "I look forward to working with Dan on future versions of PrivatOS and bringing new features to market in the coming months."

Dan Ford remarked: "In today's world we are quickly losing our ability to keep sensitive data private and secure. Since 2007, with the introduction of the modern day smartphone our lives became even more connected. Blackphone's mission to enable users to take back control of their personal data is one that is more than needed in our always-on connected society." He added: "This position allows me to apply my areas of professional experience and interest to one of the fastest growing markets and I look forward to the challenge and the opportunity."

About SGP Technologies SA
SGP Technologies is the manufacturer of Blackphone, the best privacy oriented Android phone for personal and enterprise use. Formed as a joint venture between the internationally recognized secure communications provider, Silent Circle, and award-winning Spanish mobile device manufacturer, Geeksphone, SGP Technologies is based in Geneva, Switzerland, with major operations in Madrid and Washington, DC, and cities throughout Europe, East Asia, and North America. For more information on Blackphone, please visit https://www.blackphone.ch.

Blackphone Press contacts:

W2 Communications (for US)
Dex Polizzi
[email protected]
Tel: +1 703-877-8106

Coonic (for EU/Spain)
Elvira Martín
[email protected]
Tel: +34 916 397 700/ +34 681 101 903

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SOURCE SGP Technologies SA