Dent had been the CISO for the county since 2002, prioritizing endpoint protection, the defense of critical infrastructure, collaboration with other jurisdictions and education for the county government workforce. He has attributed a rise in cyber breaches in recent years to a lack of leadership. His decades of success as a government CISO resulted from several factors, including persistence, as he previously told Government Technology.
On Aug. 1, Dent’s role changed from CISO to special adviser for the Office of the CIO, he said, at which point the county’s new CISO, Charles Gore, took over. Before that change, Dent and Gore shared the CISO role for a period, to ease the transition. The appointment of a new CIO in March marked another change in county IT leadership.
Gore worked with Dent as a senior analyst with the county for more than a decade before serving as CISO for neighboring Loudoun County for two years, then returning to Fairfax County as deputy CISO, Dent explained.
Dent said he is confident that Gore will be an effective CISO, having worked together in the county for more than a decade. Dent’s advice to the county’s next CISO is to “keep cybersecurity positioned as a business imperative, keeping it aligned with the agency.”
Relationship building is key to success in this role, Dent underlined, with senior county executives and the Board of Supervisors, and within regional organizations like the National Capital Region CISO Committee. Dent chaired that committee for more than 18 years, and now Gore will co-chair it with the Loudoun County CISO.
Relationships the CISO builds with vendors, consultants, state and federal partners can also support the county’s cybersecurity work.
“Those partnerships, I think, build opportunities for the county, to be able to do new and unique things … to lead in a lot of the new technologies,” Dent said. He was recognized this spring as one of Government Technology's Top 25 Doers, Dreamers and Drivers.
Although Dent is stepping away from county government, he said he will continue to work to support the public sector in various ways, including consulting and participating in national organizations.
“My passion is truly working with government,” Dent said. Whether that be state, local or federal government, the veteran CISO said he wants to continue supporting government entities in delivering on their missions. “And I’m truly on a mission now to get leadership to be accountable for cybersecurity.”
