John Bruns

John Bruns currently serves as Maryland’s Acting Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and previously Maryland’s 1st Director of State Cybersecurity. Mr. Bruns oversees the statewide centralization of cybersecurity policies and technology for over 22 executive branch agencies and 70,000 users. Bruns’ team at the Department of Information Technology consists of over 70 contractors and employees across security engineering, operations, threat intelligence, identity, vulnerability, GRC, training, and managed security services. Prior to Maryland, Mr. Bruns served as the CISO for Howard County, located between Washington D.C. and Baltimore. In both capacities, Bruns implemented MDR, EDR, and ITDR detection and response capabilities. John has 20+ years IT experience, from UI/UX design and web app development to business analysis and project/program management. John holds an M.S. in Cybersecurity from Wilmington University, an M.S. in Education from Johns Hopkins University, and a B.A. in English from Wake Forest University.