Secure Foundations for Modern Workloads
Leveraging the CIS Ecosystem for Securing Today's Environments
Wednesday, September 30, 2026 | 12:30 p.m. ET
As organizations deploy AI applications, agentic systems, and high-performance computing (HPC) environments, they face increasing pressure to innovate quickly while maintaining a strong security foundation. Establishing consistent, secure configurations across cloud, AI, and HPC workloads is becoming essential for managing risk at scale.
Join CIS experts for a practical discussion on how to apply proven cybersecurity best practices to modern workloads, including AI agents, large language models (LLMs), and the Model Context Protocol (MCP), a growing standard for connecting AI agents to data and systems.
The session will also explore how secure configuration best practices extend to GPU-optimized and HPC environments, covering Deep Learning AMIs, ParallelCluster, and Parallel Computing Service.
Whether you're deploying AI solutions, operating HPC environments, or modernizing cloud infrastructure, you'll leave with actionable guidance for establishing secure foundations, reducing deployment risk, and supporting innovation at scale.
What You'll Learn
- How CIS Controls and AI Companion Guides help organizations apply proven security practices to AI and agentic workloads.
- Why MCP security matters and how the CIS MCP Benchmark can support secure AI integrations.
- How CIS Benchmarks help establish secure and consistent cloud configurations.
- How to accelerate deployment of secure GPU-optimized and HPC environments using pre-hardened images.
- Practical approaches for securing modern workloads while supporting innovation and scale.
About Our Presenters
Erin Haggerty
Director, Cloud Team
Erin Dayton is the Director of the Cloud Team at the Center for Internet Security (CIS), overseeing the technical development, production, and release of CIS Hardened Images. With more than 10 years of experience in cybersecurity at CIS, Erin has spent the last eight years driving the evolution of CIS Hardened Images across Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI). Erin remains unrelenting in her pursuit of user feedback, product innovation, and complex problem solving, while leading her team in delivering secure, trusted cloud solutions for organizations worldwide.
Valecia Stocchetti
Senior Cybersecurity Engineer
Valecia Stocchetti is a Senior Cybersecurity Engineer at the Center for Internet Security (CIS), where she helps advance the CIS Critical Security Controls. She has led key initiatives including the CIS Community Defense Model v2.0, Cost of Cyber Defense for IG1, Risk Assessment Method v2.1, Living off the Land threat guidance, and the Blueprint for Ransomware Defense. With a background in both offensive and defensive security, she previously served as CIS's Information Security Audit Manager and led the Cyber Incident Response Team, supporting the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) and its state, local, tribal, and territorial partners.
Andrew Dannenberger
Product Support Specialist II at CIS
Andrew Dannenberger is a Technical Product Support Specialist and AI Standards professional at the Center for Internet Security (CIS), where he focuses on AI standards and guidance for the CIS Benchmarks and CIS Controls. In this role, he tracks emerging AI technologies and threat trends, coordinates with internal subject matter experts to ensure consistency across CIS publications, and supports AI enablement efforts through training development and working sessions. Andrew has led cross-functional AI initiatives at CIS, developed AI-powered tools, and served as a consultant on AI topics to CIS leadership. Prior to CIS, he served as a Senior Training and Development Specialist with Raytheon in Afghanistan, where he developed and led English language training programs in support of NATO and U.S. Department of Defense missions. Andrew holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Cybersecurity and Forensics from Highline College as well as a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies and Political Science from Virginia Military Institute.