Joel Schwarz is a Senior Principal at Global Cyber Risk and an Adjunct Professor at Albany Law School, where he develops and teaches Masters-level courses on cybercrime, cybersecurity and privacy.  He is a highly skilled and experienced consultant and attorney specializing in privacy, cybersecurity, cyber intelligence, and compliance oversight.  Mr. Schwarz is a certified information privacy professional (CIPP) by the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP).

Previously, Mr. Schwarz served as the Senior Director, Global Internet Enforcement & Data Analytics for BSA | The Software Alliance (BSA), managing a multi-million dollar budget and supervising local and international staff, contractors, vendors, and outside counsel. He was a founding member of BSA’s Global Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Implementation Working Group and oversaw BSA’s GDPR data mapping and related compliance activities.  He developed and administered BSA’s GDPR-Compliant Policy Framework, including the creation of operational requirements and controls for the collection and use of personal data and compliance with BSA’s privacy policies.  Mr. Schwarz also developed and implemented a holistic strategy for BSA’s Internet Enforcement Department and established working relationships with stakeholders involved in countering piracy.  Of note, Mr. Schwarz included data ethics considerations in his work.

Prior to BSA, Mr. Schwarz was the Civil Liberties & Privacy Officer (CLPO)  for the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), an office that he stood up and led as NCTC’s first Civil Liberties and Privacy Officer.  In that role, he spearheaded the development, implementation, and oversight of a holistic, agency-wide privacy and civil liberties compliance program to identify, assess, and manage compliance risks across the organization.

In that role, Mr. Schwarz designed, implemented, and conducted compliance reviews, audits, and spot checks and delivered privacy training to ensure that NCTC’s access and use of data was done in an ethical, transparent, and appropriate manner, in accordance with all laws, regulations, Presidential executive orders, international agreements, and data sharing agreements.  Mr. Schwarz also worked with Senate and House Intelligence and Judiciary Committees to keep them apprised of NCTC’s ongoing handling of information, while concurrently protecting privacy and civil liberties, and held regular briefing sessions with the President’s Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB).  Based on his work at NCTC, Mr. Schwarz was asked to advise the Office of the Director of National Intelligence’s Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center (CTIIC) on establishing a privacy office.

Before NCTC, Mr. Schwarz was a Trial Attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) where he prosecuted cybercrime cases and represented U.S. law enforcement and intelligence organizations in the negotiation, drafting, and signing of the APEC Privacy Framework.  In this role, he also drafted and implemented technology laws, policies, and information sharing mechanisms, both domestically and abroad, and provided policy advice and guidance on cybercrime/cybersecurity legislation throughout Asia and Africa, working with legislators and legislative staff in the Philippines, Taiwan, Nigeria, Botswana, and elsewhere.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Schwarz served as Special Counsel for Internet Matters for the Securities Bureau of the New York State Attorney General’s Office and as Assistant Attorney General for the Internet Bureau.  He was also E-commerce and Privacy Counsel for MetLife, where he advised various lines of business on privacy and security and was responsible for IT policies and standards.  While working for MetLife, Mr. Schwarz implemented MetLife’s e-commerce strategy, including adoption of digital certificates and single sign-on, and the purchase and roll-out of an online bank.

Mr. Schwarz received his law degree from Albany Law School, cum laude, and his undergraduate degree from the State University of New York (SUNY) Binghamton, cum laude. He subsequently completed a certification in Advanced Information Technologies from New York University.