OTTAWA and RESTON, Va. -- Third Brigade, Inc. (www.thirdbrigade.com), a provider of intrusion prevention systems (IPS), today announced the addition of Ira Winkler and Dr. Robert Mandel to its Advisory Board.

Ira Winkler, CISSP, is President of the Internet Security Advisors Group. Mr. Winkler is recognized as one of the world's experts in Internet security, information warfare, information-related crime investigation, and industrial espionage, and has been named a “Modern Day James Bond” by the media. He is a specialist in penetration testing, where he infiltrates companies, both technically and physically, to find and repair an organization's weaknesses. He began his career at the National Security Agency (NSA), where he served as an Intelligence and Computer Systems Analyst. He moved on to support other US and overseas government military and intelligence agencies. After leaving government service, he served as President of the Internet Security Advisors Group and Director of Technology of the National Computer Security Association, and Chief Security Strategist for Hewlett-Packard Consulting. He has authored Corporate Espionage, which has been described as the bible of the Information Security field, and the bestselling Through the Eyes of the Enemy.

“Hackers increasingly exploit vulnerabilities in commercial and custom software applications to gain access to critical systems and data,” said Ira Winkler, President of the Internet Security Advisors Group “Host-based intrusion prevention systems that use proven, practical approaches are central to a defense-in-depth strategy, and help protect organizations from malicious attacks. I look forward to working closely with Third Brigade as they help businesses and governments address the growing security threats.”

Dr. Robert Mandel, MD, MBA and Vice President of Healthcare Services, recently returned to Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (BCBSMA) from the Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative (MAeHC), where he served as COO for a year. Prior to this, he was Vice President of eHealth at BCBSMA managing the eHealth Program with a significant focus on the eRx Collaborative and piloting medical decision support applications and other technologies that offer the potential of improving the quality and efficiency of care delivery. In addition, Dr. Mandel spent three years as Vice President of Provider Enrollment and Services where he led many of the organization’s administration simplification initiatives.

”With the growing reliance on EHR/EMR and other eHealth systems, it is critical that every effort be made to better ensure the integrity, confidentiality and accessibility of these applications and data” said Dr. Robert Mandel, Vice President of Healthcare Services, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts. “Host-based intrusion prevention systems can help providers and payors alike stop attacks that could otherwise reduce quality of care, disrupt services, expose confidential data and increase operating costs.”

“We’re pleased that Ira and Robert have joined our extended team,” noted Brian O’Higgins, CTO of Third Brigade. “Their addition comes at a time when enterprises, particularly those in healthcare, are becoming increasingly concerned with protecting critical servers from attack. Our advisors have tremendous expertise, insights and influence, and we look forward to working closely with them.”

Third Brigade Inc.