For our guest today the sky is literally the limit – both in his professional life, where he provides customers with tailor made networking solutions, and after hours, when he’s preparing to get his private pilot license. Meet Thijs Vandecasteele, Senior Consultant at Orange Cyberdefense Belgium and our daring Extreme Hero!
Thijs, we know you’re a very dedicated Hero. But do you remember how it all began? Can you recall your very first experience with Extreme Networks?
I definitely can! I was working at SecureLink, one of Europe's largest independent MSSPs at the time, which soon was acquired by Orange Cyberdefense. I had been operating in the VoIP sector for five years prior to that and I finally had the opportunity to go back to networking. Around that time, I didn’t even know what Extreme Networks was, had never heard the name before. On the second week of my new job I attended a training on Campus Fabric and… it was sort of a love at first sight. I have to say, I was very impressed with the presented technology, it felt new and inspiring. From that day on, I have been a dedicated Extreme follower, and that continues to this day.
Extreme and Orange Cyberdefense have done some amazing projects together, for example FOD Justice or Université libre de Bruxelles. What Extreme project are you personally most proud of?
I have been involved directly in some truly amazing projects, for example the aforementioned Federal Justice Service of Belgium, as well as some other clients from the public administration sector. Many of them started out as a simple LAN renewal, spent my fair share of time replacing the old ERS switches for the new, high-performance Fabric-enabled VSPs.
What I’m most proud of, however, is not just replacing the hardware and creating a good working design for some key public organizations – it’s more like thinking with the customer, adding actual value to their networking setup and aligning the design to their needs with the technology we have. In a couple of projects I showed the benefits of combining ExtremeCloud IQ – Site Engine with the ExtremeControl NAC solution and the customers decided that was precisely what they needed. We ran it, saw the advantages, and moved on to implement that as well.
Sure, it’s good business for us, but the best part of it is that the customers are getting that extra value out of their investment thanks to our help. That's what really motivates me and where I’m getting my energy from.
In today’s distributed world, network security has become more important and – unfortunately – more complex than ever. Since security is your main area of focus, which technologies or design solutions do you tend to rely on, when the goal is to enhance network security?
It might come off as a little bit strange, but… many companies don't have any security on the network side. A lot of them are thinking they’re secure simply because they have a big firewall. But we all know that, unfortunately, it’s not true.
Some companies may think that adding security on the network side is too expensive and too complex to manage with the staff they have so they see it as an unnecessary luxury. But in reality they don't see what is going on in their network at all. Adding a network access control solution, for example, is actually a big step forward for any organization. Pair it with the elasticity of Extreme Fabric Connect and you get a perfect combination. Just being able to stretch the network to where it needs to be, in a safe and automated fashion, goes a long way in making your organization more secure.
If you could give three pieces of security advice to the businesses and organizations in Europe, what would they be?
First: be wary that the attacks can come from both outside and inside your organization. Adding a NAC is therefore a must. A modern IT network needs to be zero-trust at the edge, so that means authentication, segmentation, isolation – something that Fabric can really help you with. Also, don’t forget to evaluate your setup every now and then. The network security landscape changes quickly, so you don’t want to build your fortress on a quicksand!
It might come off as a little bit strange, but… many companies don't have any security on the network side.
Second: know what's on your network. Again, NAC can be of tremendous help here. The key advantage is not just securing the network, but also having a-single-pane-of-glass view of what is actually going on. For example, if you receive regular complaints about a certain device which is known for causing problems, it’s very easy to find it. Simply enter the MAC address or the username in the ExtremeCloud IQ, and there you have it – you now know where the host is connected. This can save you a lot of time, not only in regards to troubleshooting, but also resolving security incidents.
The third piece of advice might be a little bit general: be prepared. You see, it’s not a question of “if”, but rather “when” you will be hacked. So what actions will you take when that moment finally comes? Who in your organization will do what during a cyberattack? What are the priorities? It’s very important to have a basic incident response plan outlining specific countermeasures. We realize that learning without experience might be difficult, and that is why Orange Cyberdefense Belgium is running the Cyber Experience Center. Here, we invite C-levels to participate in a simulated cyberattack based on real-world data. They have to make decisions in real time, and see what kind of impact will these decisions have on the business, both in terms of financial and operational aspect.
What I’m most proud of, however, is not just replacing the hardware and creating a good working design for some key public organizations – it’s more like thinking with the customer, adding actual value to their networking setup and aligning the design to their needs with the technology we have.
Network security is serious business, but even the greatest experts have to unwind sometimes. What does Thijs Vandecasteele like to do when he’s not working? Any plans for this summer?
When I'm not working, I try to be there for my family: my wife and two kids. This summer, we're going to Tuscany for 10 days – really, really looking forward to this after two years of staycation. And if I manage to scrape up some more time, I’d love to go on a bike trip on my trusty KTM SMT adventure touring motorcycle. I need to do that more often, it helps me clear my head and think about something else after a long week.
Another thing which I'm quite into, is aviation. I plan to get my private pilot license somewhere in the (hopefully) near future. For now, I just have to settle for flight simulations. So yeah, maybe when the kids are a little bit older… 😉
What was the most amazing place you have ever visited?
Canada, hands down. A little while ago I went there to visit my brother and his wife in Montreal, Quebec. We had this opportunity to stay at a little chalet by the lake. Just walking around it took us two hours. Later in the evening we went kayaking and as luck would have it, a supermoon was lighting the skies above us. The whole experience was just fabulous and kind of wish I had my KTM with me. I really need to go back there with my family one day – I think they’d enjoy it too!
If you could choose any famous person to have dinner with, who would it be?
That’s a difficult one! There's only one name that comes to my mind right now and that's captain Chesley "Sully” Sullenberger – the airline pilot best known for his heroism as captain of US Airways Flight 1549 that he ditched in the Hudson River in 2009 after both engines were disabled. I would probably talk for hours with the man. Anyone who’s even a little bit into aviation will probably understand.
Belgium is world-famous for three things: chocolate, waffles, and beer and we know for a fact you’re quite a beer geek! What type of brew would you like to make a toast with after completing a particularly challenging project?
I think my current favorite one is Palm Cornet. It’s an oaked, strong, blond Belgian beer with a subtle touch of vanilla which is achieved by adding oak chips during brewing. Should do just fine for a celebration like this!
