Jason Dely discovered his electrical and mechanical aptitude at a young age. “Pulling apart something mechanical, discovering its inner workings, and rebuilding it was something of an obsession for me, and that carried forward into hardware and software systems,” he says. “When I dive into the unknown I try to apply whatever knowledge I have up to that point with abstract thinking to figure things out.”

Today, as a seasoned industrial control security (ICS) professional, Jason brings his hands-on technological expertise and business knowledge to his own company, Northern Strong Security, and to SANS in his roles as consultant, author, and instructor. SANS’ goal to fuse theory and practice in its ICS instruction resonates with Jason and fits his working philosophy.

Jason’s career has covered a broad spectrum of experiences. While working on his electronics engineering degree in the 1990s, he drew on his passion for automotive technology by working for an aftermarket garage improving the electronics and programming of late model Ford Mustangs and trucks. Upon graduation, he worked briefly assembling drone and helicopter camera systems, then spent most of his 15 years at Rockwell Automation working directly with customer systems such as proof-of-concepts, systems design, deployments, assessments, troubleshooting, and response activities. He joined Cylance in 2016, directing its ICS cybersecurity consulting practice and earning its “Best ICS Consultant” award two years in a row.

Jason joined SANS as an instructor teaching the ICS515: Active Defense and Incident Response course in 2015. Since then he is also a co-author of the ICS612: ICS Cybersecurity In-Depth course.