DR. TRICIA MCGILL
Anthropologist
Her Passion
Dr. Tricia McGill is an anthropologist and cybersecurity expert whose research focuses on emerging technologies and their human nexus. McGill has more than twenty years of experience in the private and public sectors with information technologies, cultural analysis, and cybersecurity. As a farm kid growing up in rural Arkansas, she had no Internet, shared a party-line telephone with several neighbors, and only had access to a single public television station via analog antenna. McGill appreciates the power of digital communications and their impact on communities around the world, and she is passionate about encouraging free speech and cultural understanding through technological innovation.
"Great stories start with new friends from different places. Let me tell you about how I learned to speak Spanish in Yemen..."
born
explorer
From the time she was young, McGill wanted to see the world. Her travels have taken Dr. McGill across the globe, from trekking miles into the wilderness to observe remote tribes to the wonders of major cities. Her passion for exploration fuels her quest to better understand the potential impacts of technology cross-culturally and globally.
THREAT Hunter
"Freedom of expression and information sharing must always be defended to the utmost as free speech is the biggest threat to tyranny. Cyberspace is no different than any other cultural space; it simply allows traditional human interactions at a greater pace across greater distances."
McGill served more than a decade in US Government service - including as a Science, Technology, and Weapons analyst with the Central Intelligence Agency and as a Social Scientist with the US Army - and has served multiple warzone tours.
Cybersecurity expert
McGill currently heads Google Public Sector Academy where she oversees cybersecurity training development and other technical training offerings. Prior to this, she led operational enablement at Mandiant (now a part of Google), and was chief of a cyber unit at CIA. Her years of combined public and private sector cybersecurity experience allow her to provide comprehensive, nuanced insights on complex cybersecurity issues.
educator
Dr. McGill serves as an adjunct faculty member at Georgetown University where she teaches information assurance and cybersecurity risk management. She frequently guest lectures, and has also taught at the University of Arkansas and the US Naval War College.
