Hancock: for those who requested sources...

["J.A. Terranson" <measl () mfn org>]

The below article carries most of the actual story, leaving out only a few
details.  For instance, the fact that Hancock left Savvis after being told
to cease using the fake honorofic "Dr." in anything associated with the
company, and the underlying fact that this guy was a complete and utter
charlatan.

-- 
Yours,

J.A. Terranson
sysadmin () mfn org
0xBD4A95BF

"In the age-old contest between popularity and principle, only those
willing to lose for their convictions are deserving of posterity's
approval."

Gerald Ford
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http://www.scmagazine.com/uk/news/article/624647/bill-hancock-convivial-information-security-pioneer-amateur-stand-up-comic-dead-49/

Bill Hancock, convivial information security pioneer - and amateur
stand-up comic - dead at 49

Dan Kaplan Jan 4 2007 22:31

Bill Hancock, who, despite being legally blind, parlayed a gregarious
demeanor into a career as an information security icon and cyber-risk and
network best practices advocate, died Monday. He was 49.

"He was a very impressive person," said friend and colleague Larry
Clinton, COO of the Internet Security Alliance (ISA), where Hancock
formerly served as chairman of the Board of Directors. "He was 6-feet-5,
legally blind, and when I met him, he was well over 300 pounds. He was a
big, blind guy.But he was very outgoing and immensely smart."

The former CSO and senior vice president of security at Exodus, Cable &
Wireless and Savvis Communications, Hancock used unconventional means to
emphasize security across an organization and to champion for physical and
digital security convergence.

He once enrolled in a stand-up comedy class to improve his communication
skills and later performed at the historic The Improv comedy club in New
York.

"At first, he didn't like speaking," recalled his longtime friend and
co-worker Kevin M. Nixon, 51. "It helped calm his nerves and from that
point on, you couldn't get him off the stage with a hook. He was colorful
and loud in his presentations, but everyone got the message when they left
the seminar."

"He loved to speak," Clinton said. "He was a real performer. He always
wanted to blend humor into very serious topics because he felt that got
people's attention. He was all about getting the job done, whatever it
took. He was very eclectic. He was a real Renaissance man."

Hancock, who died recovering from a December surgery to remove a gall
bladder, served as chairman of the Federal Communication Commission's
Network Reliability and Interoperability Council (NRIC), which sought to
develop federal infrastructure best practices in the wake of the Sept. 11,
2001 terrorist attacks. He also testified before Congress numerous times
on topic of cybersecurity.

"Bill was a true security evangelist," Nixon said. "It didn't make any
difference if you were John Warner or John Doe. He was going to sit down
with you and explain the reason you had to do something until you got it."

He served as CTO and principal of Network One from 1990 to 1999, before it
was acquired by Exodus, which was later purchased by Wireless & Cable and
then Savvis. He left Savvis in 2005 to join San Antonio-based SecureInfo
as its CSO.

An avid karate enthusiast despite having only 20-percent vision due to
diabetes that developed when he was a teenager, Hancock often participated
in Black Belt events while on business trips.

Few ever doubted Hancock's interpersonal skills, said close friends.

"He was the best friend I ever had as a boss," said Nixon, who worked
under Hancock from 2000 to 2005 after meeting him at a security conference
12 years ago in Baltimore.

"Bill's way of managing people was very unique. He used to say, .You're
hired because you're all experts in your industry and you don't need me in
your way. I'm here because I'm here to help you up if you fall down. But
the day you stop getting up is the day I get upset with you.'"

A lifelong Dallas area resident, Hancock is survived by his wife,
Margeina; son Landreth and stepsons, Nicholas, Thomas, Matthew and
Lawrence.

Click here to email reporter Dan Kaplan.
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Related Links
Internet Security Alliance Federal Communications Commission FCC Network
Reliability and Interoperability Council SecureInfo

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