Joe Grand is an American

electrical engineer Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...

and hardware

hacker A hacker is a person skilled in information technology who uses their technical knowledge to achieve a goal or overcome an obstacle, within a computerized system by non-standard means. Though the term ''hacker'' has become associated in popu ...

known in the hacker community as Kingpin. He achieved mainstream popularity after his appearance on ''

Prototype This! ''Prototype This!'' is an American television with the stated goal to "look into the viability of gadgets and technology seen in science-fiction movies". The series premiered on October 15, 2008, on The Discovery Channel. It was filmed on Treasure ...

'', a

Discovery Channel Discovery Channel (known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery) is an American cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav. , Discovery Channe ...

television show. He specializes in, "finding security flaws in hardware devices and educating engineers on how to increase the security of their designs". Grand has testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs regarding government and homeland computer security under his internet handle, Kingpin.

Early life and education

Grand became involved in electronics at the age of seven and later joined the Boston-based hacker group

L0pht Heavy Industries L0pht Heavy Industries (pronounced "loft") was a hacker collective active between 1992 and 2000 and located in the Boston, Massachusetts area. The L0pht was one of the first viable hackerspaces in the US, and a pioneer of responsible disclosure. ...

. He gained a

Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering A Bachelor of Engineering (BEng) or a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (BSE) is an academic undergraduate degree awarded to a student after three to five years of studying engineering at an accredited college or university. In the UK, a Bache ...

from

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

. He has published two books and co-authored a number of books relating to hardware hacks and network security. He received an honorary Doctorate of Science in Technology from the

University of Advancing Technology University of Advancing Technology (UAT) is a private for-profit university in Tempe, Arizona. Founded in 1983, UAT integrates technology into its general education requirements. The institution offers core classes (e.g., Legal Issues in Technol ...

, Arizona.

Television

In 2007 and 2008, Grand and his three co-presenters (Mike North, Terry Sandin, and 'Zoz' Brooks) filmed 13 episodes of ''

'' which were aired later in 2008 and in early 2009. The show received positive reviews and ratings and Grand continues to host additional features and content on his site.

Business ventures

After his television appearance, Grand launched Grand Idea Studio, a San Francisco-based

research and development Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...

firm. In 2009, Grand was a member of a team that demonstrated vulnerabilities in San Francisco's e-parking meters. He is also the sole proprietor of Kingpin Empire, an apparel project that gives back to the community through charitable donations. Other activities include exhibiting hardware as art in a

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

gallery art exhibition titled ''When Electronics Become Art'' and designing the electronic badges for

DEFCON The defense readiness condition (DEFCON) is an alert state used by the United States Armed Forces. (DEFCON is not mentioned in the 2010 and newer document) The DEFCON system was developed by the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) and unified and spe ...

2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010. Grand also served as judge of the

Electronic Frontier Foundation The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is an international non-profit digital rights group based in San Francisco, California. The foundation was formed on 10 July 1990 by John Gilmore, John Perry Barlow and Mitch Kapor to promote Internet ci ...

's DEFCON badge hack contest, and as an instructor at DEFCON Kids. Grand remains an active member of the electronics engineering and security communities and is a regular guest speaker at international conferences including at Black Hat USA 2013.

References

External links

Grand Idea Studio websiteZombieTech InterviewJoe Grand Interview on The Amp Hour
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grand, Joe American electrical engineers L0pht Living people 1975 births 21st-century American inventors