Biography

Professor Paul W. Poteete, PhD, is a faculty member at Geneva College, where he founded the college’s Cybersecurity program to fulfill the approved program proposal by Computer Science Chair Dr. Gordon Richards and board member Raymond Lipps. As the architect of the cybersecurity curriculum, Professor Poteete designed the undergraduate and graduate curriculum, with over a dozen courses, including every syllabi, incorporating Christian faith-based instruction, research, and labs, shaping the program's academic structure to meet student and industry needs. During the initial creation of the program, his dedication to the students extended beyond the academic core to the technical design of the computers, networks, and classrooms. He and his family painted classrooms, arranged furniture and desks, and ran network cables to make the first courses successful. He personally designed and installed every aspect from operating systems to physical computer components. His innovative approach to technical solutions and energy efficient clusters are even recorded in the academic journal, "Array."  Beyond Geneva, Dr. Poteete established partnerships with industry leaders such as MSAB for cell phone forensics and personally invested in the program by purchasing many devices with his own funds. Professor Poteete also represents Geneva College at conferences and events worldwide, promoting the college and its cybersecurity program.

Previously, Dr. Poteete worked at Aura in New Zealand to develop and expand internal strategies for their staff and clients to realize new value through their diverse security programs and capabilities. Over the past 20 years, Dr. Poteete has worked in executive leadership roles in financial, military, retail, and technology organizations, and taught in six universities and colleges. He holds a PhD in Information Technology from the University of Pretoria in South Africa, a Master of Science in Information Systems and Operations from the United States Naval Postgraduate School, and several undergraduate degrees ranging from the arts and foreign languages to information technology.

During his time at the Naval Postgraduate School, he worked on numerous advanced educational research and applied science joint operations involving multiple nations. While in the United States and abroad, he has worked in several roles, mainly as a CEO, CIO, CISO, IT Director, Professor, Principal Consultant, and Pastor. Outside of the office, he has been a newspaper columnist, cited in high-profile technical magazines, spoken at over a dozen information security conferences, interviewed by the KITV Morning Show in Honolulu, Hawaii, and the Paul Brislen Technology Podcast for New Zealand. After teaching information security and leadership in the Middle East for 5 years, promoting information security initiatives across all of New Zealand, he now lives with his wife, Holly, and their two children, Luke and Lisa in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania.

Current Courses

• CYB 251 - Networks and Security
• CYB 335 - Linux and UNIX Programming
• CYB 610 - Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems (IDPS)
• CYB 620 - Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC)
• CYB 625 - Incident Response, Disaster Recovery, Business Continuity (IR, DR, BC)
• CYB 630 - International Terrorism and Cyberwarfare
• CYB 640 - Wireless, Mobile, and the Internet of Things (IoT)
• CYB 680 - Principles of Cryptography
• CYB 690 - Cloud Security
• CYB 610 - Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems (IDPS)
• CYB 654 - Principles of Cybersecurity
• CYB 671 - Digital Forensics
• CYB 672 - Ethical and Faithful Hacking

Memberships

• COASTS (Cooperative Operations Applied Science and Technology Studies Program)
• ISACA (Information Systems Audit and Control Association)
• (ISC)2 (International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium)
• EC-Council (The International Council of Electronic Commerce Consultants)
• CyberCop - Law Enforcement and Industry Collaboration
• EDSSI (Extended Degree Scholarship Services) Former Board Member
• FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) InfraGard
• FBI Citizens Academy, San Francisco, California, USA 2004
• SecureWorld Expo Executive Steering Council 2008-2011
• IARC (Innovation and Applied Research Committee Member) UAE 2014
• NZITF (New Zealand Internet Task Force) NZ, 2015
• EDTF (Economic Development Taskforce of Beaver County) USA, 2018, Board Member
• ACFE (Association of Certified Fraud Examiners) USA, 2020, Education Associate

Professional Certifications

• Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)
• Certified in the Governance of Enterprise IT (CGEIT)
• Certified Information Security Manager (CISM)
• Certified Ethical Hacker (CEHv5)
• Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC)
• VMware Certified Professional (VCPv5)
• Microsoft Certified Professional/Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCP/MCSEv2k)
• Certified Citrix Administrator (CCAv1.8)
• Certified Novell Administrator/Certified Novell Engineer (CNA/CNEv5)
• Access Data Certified Examiner (ACE, Legacy)
• Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNAv2)

Media Appearances

• 2021: Reichard, M., & Poteete, P. W. "Cybersecurity Cat and Mouse". World News Group. https://wng.org/podcasts/cybersecurity-cat-and
• 2021: Bailey, C., & Poteete, P. W. "Forced To Upgrade". World News Group. https://wng.org/podcasts/forced-to-upgrade-1637646950
• 2021: Bailey, C., & Poteete, P. W. "Security Risk". World News Group. https://wng.org/podcasts/security-risk-1646890944

• 2021: "Colonial Pipeline" Radio Guest. The World and Everything in it. https://wng.org/podcasts/the-world-and-everything-in-it-may-20-2021-1621483676

• 2017: "Cybersecurity". Radio Guest. New Zealand Tech Podcast 320. https://nztechpodcast.com

• 2015: "Resuscitation Theatre’s Comedy of Errors, Shakespeare". National Theatre, Abu Dhabi, UAE

• 2015: "Karouma" by George Saad, Voice Actor. Abu Dhabi, UAE

• 2014: "Resuscitation Theatre’s Trojan Women, Euripides (Syrian Documentary)". National Theatre, Abu Dhabi, UAE

• 2013: "Cybersecurity". KITV Television Interview. Honolulu, HI, USA

General Publications

• 2017: LinkedIn Basics for College Students. Online publication.
• 2017: Poteete, Paul W. "With ever-shifting sands, knowledge is the ultimate power in cyber security". Security Brief, New Zealand
• 2016: The Enemy by Peter J. Clark, Narrator
• 2016: "International Cyber Security Expert Joins Aura InfoSec". National Business Review, New Zealand
• 2016: Poteete, Paul W. "Cyber Security: If You Think Your Business Isn’t a Target, Think Again". National Business Review Special Report. https://www.nbr.co.nz/sites/default/files/IT%20Feature_No%201.pdf
• 2016: Poteete, Paul W. "Lifting the Lid on the Dark Web". Idealog. https://idealog.co.nz/2016/12/05/lifting-lid-dark-web/
• 2015: Rewire Your Brain: 250 Affirmations for Positive Thinking by J.D Rockefeller, Narrator

Industry Interviews

• 2018: "Ask the Experts: Cybersecurity". Pittsburgh Business Times. https://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/feature/table-of-experts/ask-the-experts-cybersecurity.html

• 2017: "Massive CIA Leak Exposes Danger of Contractors". National Business Review, NZ

• 2007: "How-To IT Career Guide: 7 Critical Strategies". Information Week. https://informationweek.com/how-to-it-career-guide-7-critical-strategies-from-getting-started-to-semiretiring/d/d-id/1054537?page_number=2

• 2016: "How Real is Mr. Robot?" NZ Business Mag. https://nzbusiness.co.nz/magazine-issue/nzbusiness-november-2016

• 2016: "Need to know: The dark side of the IoT". IT Brief. https://itbrief.co.nz/story/need-know-dark-side-iot-and-how-protect-your-business

Industry Presentations

• 2025: "Improving Research with AI". Geneva College, USA

• 2024: "Machine Monitoring and the Human Cost". TRISS, Pittsburgh, USA

• 2022: "Building Safety Mechanisms into Critical Infrastructure". Intersec, Dubai

• 2022: "Moving from Cybersecurity to Cyber-Resilience". Intersec, Dubai

• 2022: "Cybersecurity - How It Should Be Done". Intersec, Dubai

• 2022: "Management for the Artist and Educator". GESS, Dubai

• 2019: Forensics and Ethical Hacking. RocketGirls, NASA Kennedy Space Center

• 2018: Cybersecurity Careers. RocketGirls, NASA Kennedy Space Center

• 2018: "Economic Redevelopment". EDTF of Beaver County

• 2017: "Cybersecurity: More Battlefield than Business". Geneva College

• 2017: "Business Software, Threat Modeling". Ministry of Education, NZ

• 2016: "International ICT Day for Women in Technology". MC. Abu Dhabi, UAE

• 2016: "Information Security for Directors". Institute of Directors. NZ

• 2016: "More Battlefield than Business". NZ (Wellington, Nelson)

• 2016: "Cyber Security for Business". Wellington, NZ

• 2016: "Social Network Analysis for Trust and Exploitation". Privacy, Security and Trust Conference. Auckland, NZ

• 2014: "Linux for Law Enforcement". USA CyberCrime Conference, Washington D.C.

• 2013: "Information Security - More Battlefield than Business". Abu Dhabi, UAE

• 2013: "Edmodo Engaging the Classroom". Mobile Learning Conference, Dubai

• 2012: "Cryptography". Kapiolani Community College, Honolulu, HI

• 2011: "Cryptography Decrypted". SecureWorld Expo, Santa Clara, CA

• 2011: "Security Virtualization - Who is Securing the Cloud?" Panel, SecureWorld Expo

• 2010: "Data Loss Prevention". SecureWorld Expo, Santa Clara, CA

• 2010: "Network Security-Finding the Right Management Program". Panel, SecureWorld Expo

• 2010: "Cryptography Decrypted". SecureWorld Expo, Santa Clara, CA

• 2009: "Regulation vs Reality". Compliance Summit, San Francisco, CA

• 2009: "Information Security - More Battlefield than Business". SecureWorld Expo, Santa Clara, CA

• 2009: "Network Security". Panel, SecureWorld Expo

• 2009: "Computer Security". Monterey Elks Club, Carmel, CA

• 2008: "Regulation vs Reality". SecureWorld Expo, Atlanta, GA

• 2008: "Hacking Culture". SecureWorld Expo, Santa Clara, CA

• 2008: "Today's Trends in Security Awareness" & "Regulatory Compliance". Panel, SecureWorld Expo