Ben Brown

Security Intelligence Response Engineer II

Akamai Technologies

I was able to get into a position where I can make a big difference and impact on people’s digital lives.

About Ben

In college, his passion was learning about people, their world views, and the human condition.
While he was studying anthropology and international relations, he worked a few IT jobs on the side.
But as he started to make progress on his IT jobs, he hit a glass ceiling: people started asking him to list his degrees, and were discouraged by the fact that he’d never finished high school.
After he went back to school and completed an adult education program to earn his high school degree, a friend invited him to check out Akamai Technologies.
He realized that the company’s goals were to make the internet a safer and more secure place for everyone, which really struck a chord with the anthropology side of his interests.
Says that as more and more of our lives are brought online—from our clothing to our toasters—we have more vulnerable spots where we can be attacked by cybercriminals.
The thing about his job that really lights him up is being able to teach others how to best protect themselves online.
For him, success isn’t “the numbers in your bank account—it’s the sense of being at peace and having fun at what you’re doing.”