Lesley Carhart
Cyber threat analyst
Lesley Carhart aka hacks4pancakes is the Technical Director of Incident Response at industrial cyber security company Dragos.
Career
Lesley Carhart, known online by the handle hacks4pancakes, serves as Technical Director of Incident Response at Dragos, an industrial cybersecurity company. In this role, they focus on incident response within the operational technology and industrial control systems (ICS) space — a sector that sits at the intersection of physical infrastructure and digital security.
Carhart has engaged publicly with a broad range of cybersecurity topics, including industrial control systems security, ransomware attacks, smart device insecurity, multi-factor authentication, remote working security, and high-profile incidents such as the SolarWinds hack and the 2021 Microsoft Exchange Server data breach. Their published works include a white paper focused on defending operational technology systems against ransomware.
Military Service
Prior to their work in the private cybersecurity sector, Carhart served 15 years in the Air Force Reserve, assigned to the 434th Communications Squadron — a subdivision of the 434th Air Refueling Wing's Mission Support Group. They attained the rank of Master Sergeant during their service.
Community Involvement
Carhart is a well-known and active figure in the broader information security community. They are recognized for offering career advice to those entering or navigating the cybersecurity field, and they participate in and help organize industry conferences. Notably, they have been involved in organizing PancakesCon, a community-oriented security conference.
Recognition
GlobalData research named Carhart one of the top 10 influencers in cybersecurity for the period spanning 2019 to 2020. In 2022, they were awarded the SANS Life Achievement Award, a recognition within the information security education and training community.
Personal
Lesley Carhart is openly nonbinary, asexual, and trans, and uses they/them pronouns.
