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Ted Theisen

Senior Managing Director

Photograph of Ted Theisen

2000 K Street NW, 12th Floor
Washington, DC 20006

+1.202.797.1111 Main
+1.571.328.1531 Direct

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Ted Theisen is a Senior Managing Director at Ankura with more than 20 years of experience in information technology including designing information security programs, responding to complicated cyber incidents, and enhancing information security. Ted has significant investigative experience leading numerous highly technical and complicated cyber incidents requiring multidiscipline and multinational collaboration, resulting in efficient and effective results. He is based in Washington, DC.

Experience

Ted began his career with Ankura in 2017 and took a brief hiatus to join one of Ankura’s clients as their General Manager. The client was a highly technical startup business, that was developing and commercializing a patented math system for uses in both the information security and supply-chain management industries. Ted led the production of prototypes of many technology innovations, including data encoding and an artificial intelligence driven supply-chain management solution.

Prior to joining Ankura, Ted served as a managing director at an international litigation support firm where he developed and built a cyber-risk division, including services such as incident response, risk assessments, and managed security services. He was directly responsible for overseeing all data breach matters and ensured a rapid response and adequate preservation of evidence, and ultimately identified the root cause of all breaches, as well as all exfiltrated, compromised, or exposed intellectual property.

In addition to his contributions in the private sector, Ted also has notable government service experience. He served as a special agent in the Federal Bureau of Investigation, where he investigated cyber-related matters for the duration of his tenure, including computer intrusions, cyber counterintelligence, and cyber counterterrorism matters. An ancillary duty of Ted’s in the FBI was conducting complex investigations associated with biological, chemical, and nuclear issues and the associated complexity of preserving pertinent evidence for those matters. Ted also served as the branch chief of cyber integrity for one year at the Executive Office of the President where he provided information risk management, information assurance, and ediscovery leadership to the White House, Executive Residence, Office of the Vice President, and all other peripheral entities of the White House.

Ted’s professional experience includes:

  • Leading and conducting cyber investigations while working for the U.S. government as well as in the private sector
  • Information Security posture assessments
  • Cyber incident response preparedness including incident response plan drafting, tabletop exercises, and information security awareness
  • Cyber related due diligence investigations of third parties associated with mergers and acquisitions, financial portfolio managers, private equity companies, and financial institutions

Notable Investigations:

  • Cyber Extortion of a Scientific Company – A global company was threatened by an unknown subject with releasing intellectual property to the public unless a ransom was paid. Ted led a team of investigators to identify exposed data within the company, potential exfiltration vectors, and vulnerabilities that fostered unauthorized access.
  • Cyber Domestic Terrorism Investigation – A U.S. based food company was threatened by a domestic terrorism organization over the Internet. Ted led the investigation to successful attribution to the attacker and subsequent arrest.
  • Insider Threat Investigation of a Financial Institution – A U.S. based financial institution suspected escalation of privileges by a system administrator. Ted was able to lead a team to surreptitiously identify unauthorized activity of the main subject of the investigation with minimal interruption to business functionality.
  • Data Breach of Health Care Facility – A large U.S. based health care system suffered a breach of Protected Health Information (PHI). Ted led the team to identify exposed data as well as the vector of compromise.
  • Mass Shooting Investigation – Ted served on a large team of special agents that responded to a mass shooting incident at Red Lake High School in which large amounts of digital evidence were preserved and analyzed.
  • Amerithrax Investigation – Ted served on a large team of special agents that investigated the worst biological attack in U.S. history in which anthrax-laced letters were sent to numerous Americans. Ted and team responded to the residence of the main subject, as well as his laboratory at United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Disease (USAMRIID) ensuring ample preservation of evidence in a volatile environment.
  • Numerous Cyber Counterintelligence investigations in which the tradecraft and techniques of adversaries to the United States were identified.
  • Several investigations associated with internet threats made to high-ranking public officials in which rapid attribution of the attacker was necessary.
Education
  • New Agent Training, FBI Academy – Quantico, Virginia
  • BS in Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha
Certifications
  • Certified Radiological Worker 2, US Department of Energy
  • FBI Hazardous Materials Response Team
  • MCSE and MCP+I Certified
Affiliations
  • Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI

Thought Leadership

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