“40 under 40” Class of 2019 — Joshua A. Charfauros, 36

Joshua A. Charfauros serves as the regional director for COMBS Consulting Group, where he is responsible for leading his team through day-to-day operations, including technology and security design; consulting and project management; and leading all international projects.

Security was always a calling for Charfauros. He explains, “I was getting ready to attend college in California just before 9/11 happened. I remember watching the events unfold on TV thinking to myself, how can I help? I went to see a recruiter the following day and then enlisted in the U.S. Air Force as an SF team member. My desire was to do my part to protect our nation from any further attacks. My first assignment was to guard nuclear weapons for the USAF. From there, I developed a strong passion for security.”

On the technology front, he sees many things going to IoT, specifically PoE devices. “We are starting to see more PoE based solutions with access control,” he noted. “Many of these PoE based solutions can power all ACS components.”�� He also sees video analytics and facial recognition as technologies with great promise. “Analytics are very capable when meshed with the right systems, and can be used to search for and identify threats of all types,” he said. “They can search for known threats, detect motion or activity in unauthorized areas, count people and monitor suspicious packages left behind. When integrated properly, they can also alert law enforcement if one of the parameters listed above is identified.”

In regard to attracting the next generation of security professional, Charfauros believes this is already happening. “With security relying heavily on technology, some younger people are naturally falling into security-based roles without realizing it, as It is not uncommon to see an IT department manage security operations,”