Karen Winters is the Manager of Data Protection within PepsiCo’s Information Security department, where she manages the global Data Loss Prevention (DLP) team.  Karen has been with PepsiCo for 11 years where she implemented and supported security tools such as DLP and encryption.   In addition, she was integral in establishing a web application risk assessment program which has been in use for over five years.

Prior to joining PepsiCo, she served as advanced tier support for McAfee where she provided IPS technical support to customers and their sales teams as well as serving as Security Specialist for Countrywide.  Earlier in her career she served as a Network Telecom Engineer for Frontier Communications and fulfilled other Information Technology roles throughout the Dallas area.

Karen holds a MS in Information Assurance from the University of Dallas, a BS in Management Information Systems from the University of Texas at Dallas, and holds several certifications in the field of security including a CISSP, CISM and CRISC.  She is also active in various employee resource groups supporting advancement of the IT and Information Security profession.

In her free time, Karen and her husband are avid cyclists and enjoy hiking the Blue Ridge Mountains.