Insights from Black Hat Europe 2023

Maxine Holt

Follow Analyst

Vice President, Enterprise & Channel Research

Maxine Holt leads the Enterprise & Channel research group incorporating Omdia cybersecurity, cloud and data center, platforms and applications (including AI, IoT, and digital workplace), and Canalys Channels research. Maxine has spent her entire career in the technology industry, and her team delivers a comprehensive research program to support vendor, channel, and enterprise clients. Maxine also leads the Omdia Analyst Summit at the high-profile Black Hat series of events.

Maxine has spent her entire career as an IT and security professional and has been at Omdia since 2018. She is the lead architect of the Omdia Cybersecurity Ecosystem. Maxine built her in-depth cybersecurity expertise initially at the Information Security Forum (ISF), developing thought-leading security research for ISF members. Prior to ISF, Maxine spent 15 years in technology research at Ovum, starting her career as a software developer in the financial services industry and working in consulting for the financial services and internet sectors. Maxine was named the IIAR Industry Analyst of the Year, EMEA, 2023 and is a regular speaker at events, also contributing thought-leading content to high-profile publications in cybersecurity and technology.

More Content By Maxine Holt

Hollie Hennessy

Follow Analyst

OT/IoT Cybersecurity Lead

Hollie provides insight into the fascinating and fast-moving domain of OT and IoT cybersecurity, covering both cybersecurity and product security across automotive, medical, embedded, and industrial.

Hollie has a range of experience in research. She began her career in the legal sector, writing and researching for expert witness reports on the labor market. She then moved into product testing, with a consumer protection focus. In this role, she was responsible for managing comparative tests of various technology and IoT products, as well as regular testing and investigative work into the security of these devices.

She has published articles in Which?, produced by the UK’s largest consumer organization and one of the country’s largest subscription magazines, Computing, and regularly provides expertise for news announcements and reports. She is also a regular speaker at industry security events, as well as specialised events in the OT and IoT cybersecurity space. She has a particular interest in regulation and standards, supporting numerous research projects on the topic, ranging from consumer device testing and labelling, 5G security standards, OT security regulation, and automotive cybersecurity regulation.

More Content By Hollie Hennessy

Don Tait

Follow Analyst

Senior Analyst, Identity, Authentication, Access

Don is Omdia’s Senior Analyst for the cybersecurity team, bringing more than 20 years of research, consulting, and insights experience to his role as a lead analyst in the area of identity, authentication, and access.

Don has provided analyses on smart cards, payment and banking cards, near-field communications (NFC), and contactless credentials. He has presented the findings from his reports at many events and has written feature articles on his areas of expertise for leading journals and publications. Prior to joining Omdia, Don was a telecoms research analyst at Frost & Sullivan, responsible for the firm's broadband services subscription. He was also a marketing consultant at MSI Reports Limited, where he wrote industrial, healthcare, and telecommunications reports. Don has a Bachelor of Arts (Hons.) in business studies from Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland. He is based in the UK.

More Content By Don Tait

Adam Strange

Follow Analyst

Principal Analyst, Data Security

Adam Strange is responsible for delivering a comprehensive analysis and insight program focused on data security within the Omdia cybersecurity research function, supporting vendor, service provider and enterprise clients.  Adam brings comprehensive experience of the cybersecurity industry, having worked for a series of UK-based channel and global vendor organisations.

Adam has spent his career working in enterprise IT and cybersecurity.  He joined Omdia in Feb 2023, from data classification vendor Boldon James where he ran the marketing communications function.  Prior to that, Adam worked within the cybersecurity business at BAE Systems, where he specialised in managed security, fraud prevention and anti-money laundering services in UK government and the Financial Services industry.  Previously, Adam spent 8 years at Oracle UK promoting secure database solutions both directly and with partners.  Before Oracle, he lead the enterprise solutions marketing team at Computacenter.  Adam has an MSc in corporate management from Cranfield University.

More Content By Adam Strange

Rik Turner

Follow Analyst

Chief Analyst, Cybersecurity

Rik Turner is a chief analyst in Omdia’s cybersecurity team, covering emerging cybersecurity technology trends across all the areas the team researches.

Rik has also worked in Omdia’s financial services technology team, with a specialization in capital markets technology. Prior to joining Informa, he worked as an IT journalist, specializing in networking and security. He was also a foreign correspondent in Brazil, where he worked, among others, for the Financial Times and The Economist. 

More Content By Rik Turner