Kyla Guru
Founder/CEO of Bits N’ Bytes Cybersecurity Education and GirlCon Conferences, Gen Z Cybersecurity Leader & Social Entrepreneur
At 18 years old, Kyla Guru brings to the stage her unique tales of a teenage security supergirl.
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Full Bio
At 18 years old, Kyla Guru brings to the stage her unique tales of a teenage security supergirl. Fusing together her experiences as a first-generation American teenager, her powerful insights from starting two grassroots nonprofit organizations, and her perceptive visions for building a secure future for her generation and the next, Kyla Guru shares an unmatched energy with every audience, and brings a spirited gumption to everything she does.
After her hometown experienced a cyberattack in which hundreds of social security numbers of local teachers were stolen and exposed, Kyla began studying the science of cyber-insecurity. Soon, she discovered one fact she could not ignore: nearly 90% of cyber-issues are caused by human error. Galvanized to meet an unmet need, at 14, Kyla became the Founder and CEO of Bits N’ Bytes Cybersecurity Education (BNBCE). Now, BNBCE is an international 501(c)(3) that creates and distributes curriculum to classrooms and fosters partnerships with school districts, corporations, and educational platforms to empower cybersecurity training/awareness for vulnerable populations. Thus far, BNBCE has partnered with corporations like IBM, Verizon Media, and Facebook, training over 16,000 students internationally, and bringing on eight national fellows to spread BNBCE’s mission nationwide.
One year into founding Bits N’ Bytes Cybersecurity Education, Kyla recognized the lack of diverse representation within classrooms, conferences, and board rooms, and soon became the cofounder of GirlCon Conference, Chicago’s premiere tech conference that unites 700+ industry professionals and students annually to discuss bridging the gender gap in technology.
Kyla has championed her message of cybersecurity resilience on national and international stages including TEDxChicago, NIST’s NICE Conference, CyberSat, RSAC-USA, and RSAC Singapore 2019, as the youngest speaker to walk across security’s largest stage. For her work, Kyla has been honored as Crain Chicago’s Top 50 in Tech, a John F. Kennedy Medal of Honor Recipient, a 2018 Global Teen Leader, a 2019 Harvard Book Prize Award winner, and has been named as one of the Top 100 Women Fighting Cybercrime. Kyla is also an undergraduate student at Stanford University pursuing Computer Science and International Relations, and has gained experience across cybersecurity domains including Threat Intelligence, Offensive Security, Consulting, and Security Risk and Compliance.
Testimonials
Ernie was perfect for our Elders Conference at Little River Casino Resort in Manistee, Michigan. We will definitely be using PDA again!
LITTLE RIVER BAND OF OTTAWA INDIANS
Our speaker was great and the crowd enjoyed her! She was very engaging. Thank you again PDA for the great list of suggestions!
MEDTRONIC
Everything went great! and our speaker was wonderful! Thank you so much for all your help PDA! Looking forward to the next one.
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI – KANSAS CITY
I hope that this message finds you well. We had a phenomenal time with Atsuko this past Thursday. We wanted to just let you know how amazing she was. All those that were in attendance thoroughly enjoyed her and had nothing but amazing things to say about her. Thank you for working with us to make sure this happened!
BAYLOR UNIVERSITY CAMPUS
We had a fantastic day with Inge! She was very engaging with all those that attended. Her personal stories about the holocaust were very special and we were moved that she was willing to share them with everyone. Thank you again, PDA for all your hard work and dedication to make this program such a success!
SALT LAKE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Dear PDA Group, Thank you so much for your hard work in scheduling our speaker! From the moment we reached out to you the first time, you worked with us on all details and logistics and kept us up-to-date on the progress. Thank you for all your hard work on making our event such a success! We couldn't have done it without you and your team!
SAP COMPANY
Thank you again, Dr. Kimbrough, for a great presentation, our attendees are still talking about it!
CAMPUS LABS
Dr. Henry Lee's presentation was entertaining, insightful and wise. I, and everyone at Pfizer, especially appreciate the remarks you directed about following your passion and preparing yourself to excel. Thank you, everyone, at PDA for helping to make this happen!
PFIZER
The event was successful! I received many messages expressing how awesome, outstanding and inspiring Ms. Webb-Christburg's speech was."
DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. MEMORIAL BREAKFAST, BOSTON, MLK SPEAKER
Everything went well. Atsuko was very easy to work with and the students enjoyed her performance! Thank you again for your recommendation and I hope to work with you again in the future!
CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Dr. Novello left this morning after a very successful event on our campus! Thank you PDA Group for your help from the first phone to the last you were with us every step of the way.
GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY
Jordan Carlos was very very entertaining! A majority of students who answered the event survey indicated they really enjoyed Jordan and definitely will bring him back!
WESTERN CAROLINA UNIVERSITY
On behalf of myself and my organization Entertainment Unlimited the Campus Programming Board of Ferris State University, we thank you PDA and Dan for a successful event!! Dan was magnificent! Students really enjoyed the presentation. I know I did. Can't wait to bring in more programs with PDA Group.
FERRIS STATE UNIVERSITY
It was a great pleasure to work with PDA Group! The communication was always prompt, friendly and helpful. We loved the speakers and events we booked through Mr. Peter Walker (PDA Group).
WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Thank you, Peter, for all your help, you'll be happy to know that the event went incredibly well! Aneesa Ferreira was by far one of the best speakers we've ever had!
FURMAN UNIVERSITY
Topics
Protecting Yourself Online in an Era of Cyber-Insecurity
Engaging Generation Z & Generation Alpha in Cybersecurity & Privacy: Shifting Media, Building Programs & Increasing Retention in Security
Videos
Hacking a Solution to Global Cybercrime | Kyla Guru | TEDxChicago
Tales of a Teenage Security Supergirl
Books
News
Testimonials
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