TrustedSec

TrustedSec is an Ohio-based offensive-security and incident-response consultancy founded in 2012 by David Kennedy, a former NSA and Marine Corps signals-intelligence operator who also created the widely-used Social-Engineer Toolkit (SET) and served as a technical advisor to Mr. Robot. The firm built its reputation on hands-on red team engagements, penetration testing, adversarial simulation, and digital forensics/incident response rather than shipping a product — it sells expertise and delivery, not a platform.

That services orientation shows up in its credentialing: TrustedSec holds CREST accreditation for penetration testing, a third-party quality bar that many boutique offensive-security shops don’t pursue, and it has continued to invest in incident-response bench strength, including hiring a former FBI unit chief to lead its IR practice. The firm has grown from its Strongsville, Ohio origins into a larger, purpose-built Fairlawn headquarters, evidence of sustained services demand rather than one-off project work.

For CISOs, TrustedSec is a fit when the need is people-driven: an annual red team exercise, a post-breach forensic investigation, or a mature offensive-security program buildout, not a control that runs continuously in the environment. Its value is judged by the caliber of its consultants and the credibility of its findings, which is harder to benchmark quantitatively than a detection product’s efficacy — but CREST accreditation and over a decade of continuous, name-brand client work are real, checkable signals.