Cybersecurity Advisory Board

Steve Ocepek has spent more than two decades building some of the most respected offensive security and threat intelligence practices in the industry. His career has been defined by a consistent instinct: to understand systems from the inside out, and to build the human capacity that makes organizations genuinely resilient.

Steve co-founded Wholepoint Corporation, an early network security company whose technology was acquired by Mirage Networks and later by Trustwave. At Trustwave’s elite SpiderLabs research division, he helped shape what a world-class penetration testing and incident response capability actually looks like in practice. Steve has built successful security teams and offerings within several leading firms.

Notably, Steve was foundational to the formation and success IBM X-Force Red, IBM’s offensive security team, where his contributions earned him recognition as an IBM Distinguished Engineer.

What makes Steve a natural fit for the Myndful Planet Advisory Board is not only his technical depth, but his long-held belief that the strength of any security program lives in its people. He has led teams under pressure, built functions from the ground up, and seen firsthand how burnout, culture, and human performance shape security outcomes in ways that no dashboard captures.

Steve is also an active advocate for the next generation of security professionals, supporting the Akron STEM school in developing accessible, hands-on curriculum that opens doors to careers in cyber for young people who might never have considered them.