Russell Okoth

We support regulated financial institutions, critical infrastructure, private equity–backed companies, and high-growth technology firms at pivotal moments, including rapid scale, regulatory scrutiny, M&A, AI adoption, and post-incident recovery. Cyberdiligent partners directly with boards and executive teams to shape cyber strategy, establish AI governance, and enable risk-informed decision-making, translating complexity into clear, defensible actions that strengthen resilience and drive business confidence.

Provide experience-based advisory guidance to CISOs, security teams, executives, and boards navigating complex security and technology decisions. ▪Deliver Ask-an-Expert advisory sessions to CISOs, security leaders, teams, and boards on emerging technology, risk management, strategy, and program execution. ▪Help organizations translate technical risk into executive-ready decisions and operational guidance. ▪Contribute to deployment-focused research, playbooks, executive education, and published thought leadership on cybersecurity, AI governance, and risk management. ▪Coach CISOs and security leaders on board communication, regulatory engagement, crisis leadership, emerging technology adoption, risk strategy, and program maturity.

Guide product, risk, and go-to-market strategy for an AI-driven deepfake detection and digital identity platform start-up. ▪Advise on AI security, identity verification, and deepfake detection strategy. ▪Support responsible AI governance, bias mitigation, and regulatory alignment. ▪Contribute to product-market fit across fraud prevention, KYC, and trust use cases. ▪Support partnerships, funding discussions, and ecosystem engagement.

Built and led a modern, regulator-trusted security and privacy program for a regional bank, establishing enterprise-wide capabilities and achieving Board confidence. ▪Led enterprise information security and data privacy programs aligned to GLBA, FFIEC, and NIST CSF. ▪Reported regularly to executive leadership and the Board on cyber risk, posture, and investment priorities. ▪Built and operationalized a 24×7 security operations capability, improving resilience and incident response. ▪Integrated security into enterprise risk management and regulatory engagement. ▪Established metrics-driven governance to support audit readiness and regulatory confidence. ▪Partnered with Federal Reserve Bank (FRB) examiners and external auditors to demonstrate program maturity and control effectiveness.

Secured a high-growth, high-velocity fintech platform—including real-time trading and emerging digital asset capabilities—while enabling rapid product innovation, regulatory compliance, and sustained customer trust. ▪ Directed cybersecurity, privacy, and compliance for a high-growth, high-velocity digital brokerage platform serving millions of retail investors, operating in real-time trading and emerging digital asset environments. ▪ Embedded security into product development and ci/cd workflows, enabling rapid release cycles while reducing critical vulnerabilities by 50%. ▪ Led zero trust architecture rollout across hybrid and multi-cloud environments to support scalable, low-latency platform operations. ▪ Maintained cybersecurity posture aligned with SEC, FINRA, and NFA requirements during periods of rapid growth, platform expansion, and increased regulatory scrutiny. ▪ Supported IPO-readiness and investor confidence through disciplined security governance, audit readiness, and executive risk reporting. ▪ Acted as a business-facing security executive, advising leadership on risk tradeoffs, product roadmap decisions, platform trust, and customer confidence.

Built and matured enterprise cybersecurity, security architecture, and IT risk capabilities for one of the nation’s largest non-bank mortgage servicers, supporting loan originations, servicing, and REO operations under heightened regulatory oversight and financial system importance, and leading security and risk transformation through IPO readiness. ▪ Served as a strategic partner to the CISO, with progressive leadership responsibility across the security organization, helping elevate cybersecurity and IT risk to enterprise and Board-level governance. ▪ Established core enterprise security capabilities including IAM/IGA, third-party risk management, cloud security, and incident response to support regulated growth and IPO readiness. ▪ Designed and implemented the enterprise IT Risk Management Program, integrating cyber risk into ERM, Board reporting, and executive decision-making. ▪ Built the IT Risk function in partnership with the CRO, leveraging an RCSA governance framework to align cybersecurity risk with enterprise and capital markets expectations. ▪ Created an award-winning IAM/IGA program, delivering $500K+ in cost savings while strengthening audit outcomes and control assurance. ▪ Reduced third-party risk assessment cycle time by 40%, expanding coverage across critical suppliers and strengthening supply chain resilience. ▪ Led executive-level cybersecurity crisis response, supporting regulators, auditors, and senior leadership during high-impact events. ▪ Transitioned the organization from reactive security operations to durable, risk-informed, audit-ready capabilities, supporting regulatory confidence and IPO execution.