Erik has built 10+ years of experience in cyber security topics. Initially focused on penetration testing and red teaming he pivoted to the blue side of things a few years back. His current main focus is on adversary emulation, with the ultimate goal of improving how organisations defend against such techniques (prevention & detection). Given his background, he likes to combine the red & blue sides of the cyber security spectrum for maximum effect!

Professionally, Erik is a co-founder of NVISO, where he works with clients mainly active in the financial sector and government / defense. Next to his activities at NVISO, Erik is an instructor / author at SANS (he is the course author of "SEC599 - Defeating Advanced Adversaries - Purple Team Tactics & Kill Chain Defenses"). At SANS, Erik has trained 1000+ individuals over 6 years (in Europe, APAC, Middle East and North America). This broad experience has helped form his presentation & knowledge transfer skills, which he would be glad to use during his presentation at BruCON.

With regards to certifications and qualifications, Erik has obtained a Master's degree in Computer Security from Royal Holloway (University of London) and has almost completed the alphabet in professional certifications: GSE, GSEC, GNFA, GCIA, GCIH, GWAPT,...

Next to his professional work, Erik has a number of other interests:

Erik likes to play around with home automation, thereby frustrating both his girlfriend (when the "smart home" grinds to a halt yet again due to Erik's erratic tinkering) and unfortunate vendors of technology whom Erik likes to harass. “It works, do not touch it, you idiot“ is a phrase commonly heard at Erik's place.

Erik is proud of his Belgian (more specifically: Puurs) heritage and, as a true Belgian, likes to enjoy a nice beer in the sun. Fun fact: Duvel is brewed in his native town Puurs, where he was raised and currently still lives (he will only move if the brewery moves). With regards to professional & personal ambitions, Erik is still waiting for the ultimate engagement: NVISO being requested to perform a red team against Duvel Moortgat (red team objective: obtain the Duvel recipe)!