ISSA Los Angeles Announces Dr. Eric Cole as Keynote Speaker for 2026 ISSA LA Security Summit

The October 14 event in Santa Monica will bring together CISOs, security executives, risk leaders, and practitioners to address AI-driven threats, cyber resilience, and the evolving demands of security leadership.

LOS ANGELES, California — ISSA Los Angeles today announced that Dr. Eric Cole, CEO of Secure Anchor Security Consulting, cybersecurity author, and former member of the U.S. Presidential Commission on Cybersecurity, will serve as keynote speaker at the ISSA Los Angeles Security Summit 2026. The event will take place October 14, 2026, at the Annenberg Community Beach House in Santa Monica and will bringing together security executives, practitioners, risk and compliance leaders, technology professionals cybersecurity executives, CISOs, CIOs, and practitioners to examine AI-driven threats, cyber resilience, and the evolving role of security leadership.

AI-driven threats have fundamentally changed the security landscape facing organizations today. Deepfake fraud, synthetic identity attacks, and AI-assisted intrusion campaigns have moved from theoretical risk to documented operational reality, with high-profile incidents in 2024 and 2025 exposing the limits of conventional security programs and the growing accountability placed on security leaders at the board level. The ISSA Los Angeles Security Summit 2026 brings together the region’s security community to examine what preparedness requires in this environment.

The ISSA Los Angeles Security Summit is one of Southern California’s leading cybersecurity gatherings, bringing well-known speakers from around the country for a focused discussion of emerging threats, governance, resilience, and leadership. The 2026 program includes the Security Summit, Women in Security Forum, and CISO Forum, with sessions designed to address both technical risk and executive accountability.

Sponsorship opportunities are available.

“The Southern California scene is a diverse ecosystem that stretches from the “Silicon Beach” startups of Santa Monica to the defense corridors of El Segundo, the Entertainment companies in Hollywood, and the massive enterprise hubs in Irvine. We also have a robust network of senior executives who prioritize peer-to-peer mentorship, helping local leaders navigate the complexities of AI governance and zero-trust architectures,” says Richard Greenberg, ISSA Hall of Fame.

Dr. Cole’s keynote will address how organizations can build security programs prepared for AI-enabled threats, including deepfake fraud, synthetic identity attacks, and AI-assisted phishing campaigns. Drawing on more than thirty years of cybersecurity experience across government agencies, Fortune 500 companies, and international financial institutions, Dr. Cole will focus on proactive defense, executive alignment, board-level accountability, and the organizational practices that distinguish resilient institutions from those that discover their vulnerabilities after a breach.

The keynote will also examine the evolving role of the CISO as security becomes increasingly connected to enterprise risk, business continuity, regulatory compliance, and organizational trust.

AI-driven threats have changed the calculus for every security leader in this region. The organizations that will navigate this era well are the ones investing now in leadership depth, not just technology. Dr. Cole has spent his career building exactly that kind of thinking, and our community comes to the Summit to do the same.

• Oksana Denesiuk, Marketing Director and Board Member, ISSA Los Angeles

The threats organizations face today, AI-generated fraud, synthetic identity attacks, deepfake impersonation at scale, are not the product of better technology alone. They are the product of organizations that treated security as a technical function rather than a leadership one. I look forward to joining ISSA Los Angeles to engage with the security community on what it means to build programs that are genuinely prepared for this moment.

• Dr. Eric Cole, CEO, Secure Anchor Security Consulting

The venue is a wonderful location right on the shores of the Pacific Ocean in Santa Monica. Attendees speak of this as their favorite event space, allowing for breaks on the beach and serious discussions breathing in the refreshing sea air.

Registration is now open. To view the full schedule and register for the ISSA Los Angeles Security Summit 2026, visit summit.issala.org

A big thanks to Object First for their sponsorship of both the CISO Forum and the Summit. They provide secure, simple and powerful backup storage purpose-built for Veeam that enforces Zero Access, ensuring nobody can alter or delete backup data—even with admin credentials.

https://objectfirst.com

About ISSA Los Angeles

ISSA Los Angeles is a founding chapter of the Information Systems Security Association, the global organization for information security professionals. The chapter advances the profession through education, peer networking, leadership development, and community engagement, bringing together practitioners, executives, students, and industry partners across Southern California.

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About Dr. Eric Cole

Dr. Eric Cole is CEO of Secure Anchor Security Consulting and one of the most recognized voices in cybersecurity leadership. Over a career spanning more than thirty years, he has served government agencies, advised Fortune 500 companies and international financial institutions, authored multiple books on cybersecurity strategy, and spoken to audiences worldwide. He is a former member of the U.S. Presidential Commission on Cybersecurity and a leading advocate for treating security as a strategic business leadership function.

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