Ben Hanson

Ben Hanson is a globally recognised cyber security keynote speaker known for bringing clarity to some of the most complex digital and AI-driven risks facing organisations today. With more than 25 years of frontline experience across cyber security, enterprise technology, and business transformation, Ben speaks with authority, warmth, and credibility. His work focuses on the human, cultural, and strategic realities of cyber security, helping leaders understand how decisions made at board level shape real-world resilience. Audiences value his ability to explain highly technical subjects in plain language without losing depth or rigour.

Ben is currently Global Director of Field Engineering and Field CTO at Zenity, a leading agentic AI security company. In this highly visible thought leadership role, he advises global organisations on securing AI-powered systems while enabling innovation at scale. Prior to this, Ben spent over seven years at Microsoft as Senior Security Strategist and Advisor, where he worked directly with CISOs, boards, and executive teams across financial services, healthcare, energy, and critical national infrastructure. His role placed him at the centre of some of the world’s most complex security and operational resilience challenges, balancing risk, regulation, technology, and organisational culture.

Earlier in his career, Ben led the InfoSec and Cybersecurity Practice at Intellinet, a respected US-based management consultancy, where he built and scaled advisory services for enterprise clients. He also held senior international roles at Atkins as an Enterprise Architect and Business Transformation Architect, overseeing global technology programmes, mergers, and large-scale digital change across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and North America. Ben began his career in hands-on engineering and IT leadership roles, an experience that still shapes his practical, grounded approach to security leadership today.

Alongside industry leadership, Ben is a Visiting Lecturer in Digital and Cyber Security at the South Central Institute of Technology, supporting students with real-world insight drawn directly from global enterprise environments. As a speaker, Ben is known for being open, engaging, and refreshingly honest. His keynotes cover cyber resilience, AI security, leadership decision-making, and the cultural blind spots that undermine security programmes. One recent keynote explored how financial institutions can adopt agentic AI securely without increasing systemic risk. Audiences leave better informed, more confident, and better prepared to make decisions that truly strengthen security.

In May 2024 we sat down virtually with Ben Hanson and discussed the current and future cyber security climate and the emergence of AI and the effects this will have globally. Watch our Exclusive Interview with Ben Hanson on the Cyber Security Speakers Agency YouTube Channel.