John O'Neill Sr.
Helping others embrace technology!
Jefferson, Ohio, United States
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John’s professional IT career began as a teenager, taking him on many wonderful adventures over the past 30 years. John’s IT path started with programming but branched out quickly. Opportunities from the Help Desk to the Corner Office shape his IT journey. Specializing in CyberSecurity, Cloud, and Infrastructure technologies, John’s broad skillset includes Business Systems (ERP/CRM/HRMS), Desktop and Server OS, Identity Management, Endpoint Management, Public/Private/Hybrid Cloud, Networking Services, Network Architecture, IP Telephony, CyberInsurance, and CyberSecurity.
Passionate about giving back to the IT community, John develops relevant, timely content that IT Pros take advantage of immediately. Part of the MVPDays team, he develops both online and in-print content. In addition, John authored material as a contributing editor for the Petri.co.il online community as well as a senior contributor to Tom’s IT Pro, Redmond Magazine, Netwrix, and both Thomson-Reuters' Aspatore Books and Exec Blueprints publications.
Helping others succeed and advance in IT drives John to share knowledge. Speaking at conferences worldwide, developing technology training courses for Pluralsight’s online training library, and leading webinars are all regular investments by John in the current and next generation of IT professionals. Blending high-tech education with a bit of entertainment, attendees at John’s sessions regularly rate him as one of their favorite speakers. Attendees rated John top speaker for TechMentor Redmond 2019 and again in 2022.
John is proud to be honored by industry organizations, leaders, and especially his peers. A multi-year recipient of Microsoft’s MVP Award, John received NEOSA’s CIO of the Year Award in 2012.
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Human Firewall 2.0: Training Your Workforce for the AI Era
Your employees are your first line of defense against AI-related security risks—and potentially your biggest vulnerability. This session focuses on building comprehensive AI literacy programs that teach responsible AI usage without stifling productivity. I'll share proven training methodologies, policy frameworks, and communication strategies that create security-conscious AI users.
Attendees will gain practical tools for developing AI literacy programs, along with templates and frameworks they can customize for their organizations.
Using the Defender Exposure Score to achieve rapid security wins
In this concise 20-minute session designed for IT professionals, we'll unpack the power of Microsoft Defender Exposure Score to drive quick, impactful cybersecurity enhancements within your organization. As a seasoned IT expert, I'll walk you through the ins and outs of leveraging this dynamic metric to prioritize and address vulnerabilities with precision. We'll cover how to interpret the exposure score's insights, integrate it into your existing security strategies, and take decisive action to improve your security posture.
The Ransomware Playbook: How to Build a Comprehensive Defense and Response Plan
Ransomware remains one of the most devastating cyber threats, but many organizations still lack a comprehensive defense and response strategy. In this session, I’ll present a ransomware playbook that covers everything from prevention to post-attack recovery. I’ll break down the key components of a successful ransomware defense, including endpoint detection and response (EDR), backups, and network segmentation, and how to integrate these into a cohesive strategy.
Using real-world case studies of ransomware attacks, I’ll highlight what worked in terms of prevention and recovery, and where organizations went wrong. I’ll also discuss the role of cyberinsurance in ransomware defense, including what policies typically cover and how to avoid claim disputes.
Attendees will leave with a clear understanding of how to build a ransomware defense strategy, actionable steps for preventing attacks, and best practices for responding to and recovering from ransomware incidents.
Mastering Cloud Security: Avoiding the 7 Most Costly Mistakes
This session dives into the most common cloud security pitfalls that organizations face and how to mitigate them effectively. From misconfigurations to weak identity and access management, inconsistent encryption, and lack of incident response preparation, this session will provide actionable insights and real-world examples to help you strengthen your cloud security posture. Whether you're an IT professional managing cloud infrastructure or a decision-maker concerned about security risks, this presentation will equip you with best practices, tools, and strategies to safeguard your cloud environment and ensure compliance. Don't miss the chance to learn how to avoid costly security breaches and optimize your cloud security practices!
Leveraging artificial intelligence in modern enterprise risk management
In this engaging 50-minute session, cybersecurity professionals, executives, and stakeholders will be introduced to the transformative power of artificial intelligence (AI) in modern enterprise risk management. As organizations navigate the complexities of today's digital landscape, the integration of AI technologies offers unparalleled opportunities for identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks more efficiently and effectively. This session will provide a concise yet comprehensive overview of how AI can enhance traditional risk management practices through predictive analytics, automated risk assessments, and real-time threat detection. Attendees will explore practical examples of AI-driven risk management solutions, gaining insights into their implementation and the benefits they bring, such as improved decision-making, enhanced operational resilience, and a proactive approach to risk. Designed for stakeholders looking to stay ahead of the curve, this course equips participants with the knowledge to leverage AI in their organization's risk management strategy, ultimately driving better business outcomes in an era of digital transformation.
Copilot for Security: Enhancing Your Security Operations with AI
As cyber threats continue to evolve in complexity and frequency, security teams need innovative tools to stay ahead. Microsoft Copilot for Security represents a paradigm shift in how organizations approach security operations, combining the power of AI with human expertise. This session explores how Copilot for Security enhances threat detection, incident response, and security automation capabilities. Through practical demonstrations and real-world scenarios, attendees will learn how to leverage AI-driven insights to strengthen their security posture, streamline operations, and make faster, more informed security decisions. Discover how to effectively integrate Copilot with existing security tools and workflows while understanding best practices for implementation and adoption.
Building a Resilient Incident Response Team: Beyond Playbooks and Tools
Incident response (IR) is about more than just having the right playbooks and tools—it’s about building a resilient team that can function effectively under pressure. In this session, I’ll focus on the human side of incident response, discussing team dynamics, leadership, communication, and continuous training. I’ll share stories from my own experience in managing high-pressure incident response situations, including both successes and failures, and what contributed to each outcome.
We’ll discuss the importance of cross-team collaboration, training exercises (e.g., tabletop exercises), and how to cultivate a culture of readiness. I’ll also cover the role of leadership in incident response, particularly how leaders can manage communication, decision-making, and team morale during a crisis.
Attendees will leave with actionable advice on building and maintaining a resilient IR team, as well as best practices for continuously refining incident response processes and team readiness.
Authentication and Encryption Basics for Beginners
Dive into the foundational elements of cybersecurity with this session on authentication and encryption basics, ideal for IT professionals at the outset of their career. Guided by a seasoned cybersecurity expert, this beginner-friendly session demystifies the principles of securing digital identities and protecting sensitive information. Participants will learn about various authentication methods, from passwords to multi-factor authentication, and the significance of encryption algorithms in safeguarding data both at rest and in transit. The course will illuminate key concepts with real-life scenarios, providing a clear. Expect a blend of engaging theoretical explanations and practical exercises designed to impart a solid grasp of authentication protocols and encryption techniques, essential tools for anyone embarking on a career in information technology and eager to build a secure and trustworthy computing environment.
Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Business Strategy
In this dynamic 30-minute session, we'll delve into the profound implications of artificial intelligence (AI) on business strategy, equipping attendees with the insights to harness AI's transformative potential. As AI technologies continue to evolve at an unprecedented pace, understanding their strategic impact becomes crucial for businesses seeking to maintain competitive advantage and innovate. Participants will explore how AI is reshaping industries by enabling more informed decision-making, optimizing operations, and creating new value propositions. The course will cover key considerations for integrating AI into business models, including ethical considerations, data governance, and the need for a skilled workforce. Through real-world examples and practical insights, attendees will learn how to strategically implement AI solutions to drive efficiency, innovation, and growth within their organizations. This session is designed for stakeholders eager to align AI initiatives with broader business objectives, ensuring their organizations are well-positioned to thrive in the digital era.
AI-Ready Infrastructure: The Security Foundation Checklist
Successful AI deployment requires more than just choosing the right model—it demands a security-first architecture. This session provides a comprehensive pre-deployment security framework, covering everything from data pipeline protection to model governance. I'll share architectural patterns, security controls, and governance models that ensure AI initiatives launch safely and remain secure throughout their lifecycle.
IT teams will receive a practical, actionable checklist for securing AI deployments, along with architectural patterns and governance frameworks they can immediately implement.
AI as Your Security Force Multiplier: Proven Enterprise Implementations
AI isn't just creating new threats—it's revolutionizing how we defend against them. This session showcases real-world implementations where AI strengthens security posture, from intelligent threat hunting to automated incident response. I'll present concrete case studies with measurable results, demonstrating how organizations are successfully deploying AI to enhance their security operations.
Attendees will learn proven AI use cases, implementation approaches, and success metrics, enabling them to build business cases for AI security investments.
10 Habits Keeping You from IT Community Super Stardom
IT Pros are poster children for continuous improvement. Our challenge to keep skills relevant requires dedication, devotion, and commitment. Collaboration and communication help evolve not only personal growth, but the growth of our peers. Never spoke at a conference? Haven’t led a user group? Didn’t find time yet for blogging? This session, a conversation with three established IT Pros well-seasoned in community involvement, will lead you through challenges faced by everyone on their way to IT Community super stardom!
Surviving Ransomware Attacks with Microsoft 365 Defender
Ransomware is the nuclear bomb of malware. Annoying popups and single file deletion problems pale in comparison to the organization-level crippling most ransomware attacks produce. Not to mention the public relation nightmares! Microsoft brings to bear formidable defenses with their Microsoft 365 Defender line of products. Leveraging Microsoft 365 Defender, organizations attacked by ransomware minimize their damage and downtime.
Enhance Security While Increasing Your Admin Superpowers
The first half of this all day workshop focuses on improving security by eliminating those out of sight, out of mind security holes on our servers. Services running under user accounts, scheduled tasks running with credentials where passwords are set to never expire, these are threats to the security of our systems, yet admins use these techniques every day. Stop the insanity! Learn the background and step-by-step techniques for gMSA use in these scenarios. In the afternoon, we’ll take security and administration to the next level through the use of Just Enough Administration. Step-by-step, from start to finish, configure, deploy, and use JEA successfully!
Fast-Track Your Way to IT Pro Rockstar Status
Those new to IT often look at seasoned IT Pros wondering “how do they get things done so fast?” Usually, the answer is as simple as the tools in our toolbox. Over the years, we identify tools and techniques empowering us to complete a task in minutes rather than hours. Is it really necessary to wait years to gain these tools? NO! In this session, John O’Neill Sr. and Dave Kawula share the tools gained through 50 plus years combined experience in IT. Server management, network management, storage management, identifying performance issues, ensuring rock-solid disaster recovery, and much more is packed into this all-day workshop!
Cyber Security Awareness for the C-Suite
Cyber criminals aim squarely for the C-suite. Executives are prime targets for attackers. Successful attacks providing straight line access to an organizations systems, data, and stakeholders. Protecting the C-suite from modern cyber risk require IT Pros to move like a champion prize fighter. “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” This session immerses attendees in the answers to two critical questions; “why” executives are such valuable targets for cyber criminals and “how” to protect them and the organization from exploitation.
John O'Neill Sr.
Helping others embrace technology!
Jefferson, Ohio, United States
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