Roundtable: Data Protection Lays the Groundwork for Cybersecurity Strategies

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

This multi-expert roundtable explores cybersecurity measures specific to electronics manufacturing. NEC’s Hiroyuki Watanabe, Divyash Patel, CEO of MX2 Technologies, and Ali Pabrai, CEO at EC First, join moderator Nolan Johnson for a deeper discussion on cybersecurity certifications.

The most important asset to a manufacturer is the data. Leadership must protect the data from attack. During this discussion, they lay the groundwork for cybersecurity strategies, security up and down the supply chain, and specific programs, such as CMMC, IPC-1792, and NIST800-171. Security is only as strong as your weakest link, and ensuring cybersecurity along the supply chain means we’ll all be links in much longer chains.

Participant Bios

Divyash Patel is the founder and CEO of MX2 Technology, Inc., a Silicon Valley-based provider of managed IT, cloud, and compliance services. With over two decades of IT leadership experience, he has positioned MX2 as a trusted partner for organizations in regulated industries. He led the company to achieve HITRUST Certification and CMMC Level 2 certification, helping clients strengthen cybersecurity, meet compliance requirements, and operate with confidence in today’s risk-driven digital landscape.

Hiroyuki Watanabe is the Executive Director, Global Security at NEC Corporation. He serves as the chair of the IPC-1792 cybersecurity standard for Trusted Validated Secure Supply Chains. He is committed to assisting critical SME factories and to improving the resilience of the entire electronics manufacturing supply chain.

Ali Pabrai is the CEO of ecfirst, bringing over two decades of experience delivering advanced AI-powered cyber defense solutions. Pabrai and ecfirst are committed to securing organizations in healthcare, government, and manufacturing and helping clients achieve compliance with frameworks like NIST, CMMC, and HIPAA through tailored strategies and technologies.