Andrew Wildrix: Leveraging Modern Technologies, Redefining the Security Landscape

Intrusion is a global leader in real-time AI cybersecurity solutions designed to kill cyberattacks before they harm business. After years of gathering global internet intelligence and working exclusively with government entities, the company released its first commercial product in 2021. 'Intrusion Shield' makes it easy for businesses to incorporate a Zero Trust reputation-based security solution into their existing infrastructure.

An Accomplished Leader with Farsighted Goals

Andrew Wildrix retired from the Army after 24 years of service. Working for AT&T Labs and Advanced Technical Support, he developed his technical skills. Not just that, Andrew took early retirement to pursue a career within the startup world and ended up at Intrusion. Andrew currently serves as the CIO of the company, responsible for the IT, Engineering, Operations, and Support organizations.

Learning Life Lessons from Diverse Experience 

Andrew reveals that he completed three successful company commands in the Army and carries a lot of leadership lessons from that. Serving globally in peacekeeping roles and wartime missions exposed him to unique cultures and experiences he could not have gained elsewhere. He also mentions that the time he spent in telecom developed an insatiable curiosity to explore the theory behind all the technologies he was exposed to. Andrew remarks that his time in the startup world presented many opportunities to excel by learning to adapt to a resource-constrained environment.

Overcoming the 'Changes' with Compassion and Hard Work

Andrew says that before Intrusion hired him, a foreign government bought its properties to spy on the company. Intrusion got few weeks to move the corporate headquarters, labs, and data center, or risk losing their government contracts and possibly lose their intellectual property. He adds that Intrusion was four weeks from the deadline when he took over as the VP of IT and had to coordinate the effort while transitioning from his former employer. According to Andrew, it was a very steep learning curve. Once he was promoted to SVP of Technology, he had to deal with tripling the size of his reporting structure while effectively managing a group that was culturally alien to him and his thought processes. He highlights that adding Operations and Support to the responsibilities with the promotion to CIO made it even more challenging.

Integrating Security into Every Aspect for Betterment 

In Andrew's opinion, CIOs should look out for emerging technologies to add to, replace, or support their current infrastructure; it's the only way to stay ahead. He says, "Be smart enough to ask intelligent questions and brave enough to ask stupid questions. One needs to be able to take business considerations into account when making technical decisions. You must be able to integrate security into every aspect of your company's operations and processes without creating undue hardship. Finally, be able to take calculated risks and responsibility for failure."

'Innovation' at the Heart of Encryption

Signature-based solutions, malware prevention tools, and rules-based firewalls cannot adequately protect one from the zero-day attacks that comprise the bulk of successful cyber-attacks, claims Andrew. He remarks, "So why does the industry spend the bulk of its dollars and time on them? It's time for a different approach." Andrew reveals that the way Intrusion uses IP/Domain reputation is innovative. Intrusion Shield exposes bad actors in the network that anybody couldn't see before. The needs of its customers and insights from the field gathered from its team of threat analysts drive Intrusion's product roadmaps. He concludes by asking, "What could be more appealing?"

Leaders to Use AI and ML to Analyze Threats

Andrew states that like all disrupters, leaders must work hard to stay avid learners and adopt new technologies quickly to stay ahead of the market and lead. The trick is to learn how to apply them properly to gain the maximum benefit for the least cost. Threat actors are employing over 1200 PhDs to attack targets in the US daily. He adds that Intrusion employs AI and ML as a force multiplier to keep its technology ahead of the enemy using less than 40 software engineers and threat analysts. Leaders have always had to learn how to do more with less. The difference now is that the company is forced to bet on innovative technologies to achieve its goals. It seems counterintuitive but playing it safe in your cyber strategy is a great way to guarantee failure.

Powering the Shield Product Line with Trailblazing Tech

Andrew envisions that the industry at large will become more saturated over time, increasing the need for leaders to critically think about what is truly innovative and to have the courage to take those calculated risks to stay ahead. The reliance on established thought leaders will become even more important as more options become available in the market. He highlights that Intrusion intends to lead that with its innovative technologies coming out this year to augment its Shield product line.

A Piece of Andrew's Mind for Emerging Leaders

According to Andrew, one should learn from the mistakes of others. "Nobody has enough time to make them all yourself. You can make every negotiation a win/win if your goals are important enough and you don't care who gets the credit," he opines. Adding to this, Andrew also said that one should know his/her strengths and play to them. He claims that anybody can always build a team around them to address their weaknesses. Andrew concludes by saying, "Do not let fear guide your decisions."