End Users '20 under 40' 2017—JR Webb

JR Webb, 35

Security systems lead, Square Inc.

San Francisco

As the security systems lead for Square Inc., a financial and merchant services aggregator and mobile payment company based in San Francisco, JR Webb manages a small team that works on deploying new security systems as well as maintaining and supporting current ones.

“I focus a lot on the security scope in office construction projects globally through project meetings and onsite visits, including the design, planning, vendor relationships, and implementation,” he explained. “Building and supporting the physical security technology of the Global Security Operation Center (GSOC) includes managing regular system updates or upgrades. The main systems we build and support are global access control systems, security video platforms, intrusion detection, intercoms, and digital radio systems.”

Webb has always had an interest in security, law enforcement, investigations, and technology. “I started out on the security operations side, and I realized that often our success or failure was heavily reliant on the condition of the security technology,” he said. “This led me to want to learn more about security technology. I specifically sought to work for tech companies given the environment that is very receptive and supportive of innovation.”

With the expanded use of cloud technologies and mobile phones and other devices, Webb is excited to see “new and innovative ways that we can authenticate people faster, with more reliability, and more seamlessly,” he noted. “Also, the security industry in general is maturing its technical capabilities, so more and more products now have APIs that allow for connections to the rest of your infrastructure.”

He continued, “The movement for interconnectivity of security systems has not truly been realized. I look to see with the rapid expansion of smart devices, smart buildings, and IoT � new and more intelligent security products to be developed will deliver interconnectivity that can become the norm rather than a grand idea for the future.”