Virtru, a leader in data-centric security, today announced Dr. Wayne Chung has joined the company as Chief Technology Officer (CTO), where he will lead technical strategy and execution, partnering with Will Ackerly, Virtru Co-Founder, Chief Architect, and inventor of the Trusted Data Format (TDF), an open standard for data-centric security that is rapidly being adopted by national defense and intelligence agencies around the world.
Read More on CIO Influence: AI-Augmented Risk Scoring in Shared Data Ecosystems
Chung’s appointment marks a significant milestone for Virtru as it accelerates the deployment of its Data Security Platform in the national security and commercial markets—while simultaneously growing its 6,000+ customer commercial SaaS business.
“I’m honored to join Virtru at such an exciting moment,” said Chung. “The team’s vision for data-centric security across SaaS, defense, and AI is both bold and timely. Our national institutions need the fine-grained security, control, and simplicity that Virtru provides. I look forward to partnering with this team to scale Virtru’s impact and drive greater adoption of data-centric security.”
Chung brings an exceptional track record with executive roles across both public and private sectors. At the FBI, he served as CTO, leading cloud migration, cybersecurity modernization, and the development of advanced data analytics, AI and ML capabilities. Chung also previously held the position of Innovator-In-Residence at the NSA’s Cybersecurity and Computer Network Operations Mission. He currently serves as a Technical Amicus Curiae to the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Courts, and is a Senior Fellow at the Center for National Security and the Law at Georgetown University.
Also Read: Zero Trust in the Cloud Era: Securing Hybrid and Multi-Cloud Environments
In the private sector, Chung has held CTO roles at BlueVoyant and Clara Analytics, where he scaled cutting-edge data security and AI platforms.
Ackerly will focus on advancing Virtru’s technical architecture and research, continuing to lead innovation efforts surrounding the Trusted Data Format (TDF) and pushing the boundaries of what data-centric solutions can achieve in the era of agentic AI.
“As Virtru continues to deploy software at scale across large federal and commercial organizations, Wayne’s unique blend of public and private-sector experience is a valuable asset to our team,” said Ackerly. “His leadership will help Virtru remain ahead of the curve in enabling secure, data-centric collaboration for both government and enterprise customers.”
[To share your insights with us, please write to psen@itechseries.com]
