Biography

With over 30 years of experience in data protection, IT systems management and information security, Mr. Koons brings a broad range of expertise to the table. His passion for e-commerce and customer-centric thought process began during his time as an early employee of Amazon.com and has carried through to present-day.  Working in both a tactical and strategic role, Mr. Koons enjoys the “hands on” work just as much as the administrative and strategic guidance he provides.  From testifying before House and Senate committees to speaking at major industry events, Mr. Koons is a seasoned public speaker and expert witness on most data protection and data privacy topics. Mr. Koons’ IT and information security career began as a special operations soldier in the United States Army working with both JSOC/SOCOM and NSA/ CSS Europe (NCEUR).  Mr. Koons has held senior management and consulting positions at Unisys, Staples and Amazon.com as well as serving as an adjunct information systems and technology instructor at an accredited university.  Currently Mr. Koons is a founding partner at Data Privacy and Security Advisors.

Mr. Koons has served as a member of the board of directors of M3AAWG (Messaging, Malware and Mobile Anti-Abuse Working Group) – a working group dedicated to bringing the messaging industry together to work collaboratively to fight abuse.  He has served on the board of directors for the ESPC (Email Sender and Provider Coalition) as a passionate advocate on behalf of messaging anti-abuse professionals, email senders, providers, and other digital marketers.   Mr. Koons has  contributed to the EEC (Email Experience Council), the DMA (Direct Marketing Association) and NRF (National Retail Federation), as well as a speaker at MediaPost’s Email Insider Summit events and MECLABS Marketing Sherpa events.

Mr. Koons commands a comprehensive understanding of the broad legal frameworks that govern data protection, commercial email and international electronic commerce (CASL, CAN-SPAM, PECR, GDPR, CCPA, Nevada SB-220, LGPD,  ePrivacy Regulation, etc.).  Mr. Koons is active in many key organizations such as the IAPP (International Association of Privacy Professionals) where he currently serves on the Research Advisory Board.  He participates regularly with the Future of Privacy Forum, a nonprofit organization that serves as a catalyst for privacy leadership and scholarship, advancing principled data practices in support of emerging technologies.

In addition, Mr. Koons is an active member of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) InfraGuard as well as the Metropolitan Police Cyber Crime Unit’s (MPCCU) FALCON project (Fraud and Linked Crime Online) in the United Kingdom.  He has also worked with the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) on data protection and data privacy matters.

Mr. Koons is also a Certified Information Privacy Professional.  The CIPP is the global standard in privacy certification.  Developed and launched by the IAPP with leading subject matter experts, the CIPP is the world’s first broad-based global privacy and data protection credentialing program.  The CIPP/US demonstrates a strong foundation in U.S. private-sector privacy laws and regulations and understanding of the legal requirements for the responsible transfer of sensitive personal data to/from the U.S., the EU and other jurisdictions.  Additionally, he holds many independent "Expert Certifications" from privacy technology vendors.