Eric Thompson Joins Kroll’s Cyber Risk Practice, Expanding Research and Development Capabilities

New York – Kroll, a division of Duff & Phelps, the global leader in risk mitigation, investigations, compliance, cyber resilience, security and incident response solutions, today announced that Eric Thompson has joined the firm as a managing director in the Cyber Risk practice, based in Miami Lakes, Florida. Thompson will work on cryptography and code-breaking research focusing on cryptographic ransomware and will work closely with Kroll technology partners to innovate and build comprehensive cyber security solutions for small to medium-size businesses.

In addition to over 25 years of experience in computer forensics and cryptography, Eric is also a successful technology entrepreneur. Prior to joining Kroll, Eric was the founder of AccessData, a leader in computer forensics, eDiscovery and cryptanalysis. During his 25 years at AccessData, the firm grew to over 500 employees with over $80 million in annual revenue. Eric was the original designer of AccessData’s Forensic Toolkit (FTK), Password Recovery Toolkit (PRTK) and Distributed Network Attack. Eric’s computer forensic research ultimately resulted in FTK’s adoption by the FBI, Secret Service and numerous other law enforcement agencies as an industry standard. Eric also co-founded iServer, a successful web hosting company which in 1998 merged with two other web companies, H-Ways and Best, to form Verio. After a public offering, Verio was ultimately purchased in 2000 by NTT for $2.2 billion.

Jason Smolanoff, Senior Managing Director and Global Leader of the Cyber Risk practice at Kroll, commented, “Eric’s extensive experience in computer forensics and cryptography is invaluable. As cyber threats become more complex and the ransomware epidemic grows, it is important for our practitioners to be one step ahead of the game in order to help clients respond and bolster defenses against cyber-attacks. We’re excited to have Eric on the team.” 

“Eric’s experience building successful cyber security solutions will enhance our roadmap and expand our technology to small and medium-size business, which are involved in over 40% of  incidents and often struggle to recover,” said Ben Demonte, Managing Director and North America Cyber practice leader. “Our ability to provide end-to-end cyber risk management can only be sustained by skilled experts like Eric, who are able to merge the latest technology and research to lead our clients toward cyber resilience.”    

About Kroll, a division of Duff & Phelps 
Kroll is the leading global provider of risk solutions. For more than 45 years, Kroll has helped clients make confident risk management decisions about people, assets, operations and security through a wide range of investigations, cyber security, due diligence and compliance, physical and operational security, and data and information management services. For more information, visit www.kroll.com.

Duff & Phelps is the global advisor that protects, restores and maximizes value for clients in the areas of valuation, corporate finance, investigations, disputes, cyber security, compliance and regulatory matters, and other governance-related issues. We work with clients across diverse sectors, mitigating risk to assets, operations and people. With Kroll, a division of Duff & Phelps since 2018, our firm has nearly 3,500 professionals in 28 countries around the world. For more information, visit www.duffandphelps.com.