Open to opportunities

Nicholas Best

@nicholasbest

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Results-driven Security Control Assessor with expertise in compliance.

United States

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What I'm looking for

I am looking for a role that fosters growth and innovation in cybersecurity.

I am a results-driven Security Control Assessor with over 5 years of experience supporting federal and commercial environments in achieving compliance through the full Risk Management Framework (RMF) lifecycle. My expertise lies in evaluating security controls per NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5, developing formal assessment documentation, and driving Authorization to Operate (ATO) processes.

Throughout my career, I have demonstrated proficiency in stakeholder engagement, technical evidence review, and vulnerability identification. I have successfully led full lifecycle RMF assessments, developed tailored Security Assessment Plans, and authored comprehensive Security Assessment Reports. My ability to work cross-functionally with ISSOs, system owners, and engineering teams has been instrumental in maintaining compliant, risk-informed security postures.

Experience

Work history, roles, and key accomplishments

Current

Security Control Assessor

Current

AetherForge

Aug 2023 - Present (1 year 11 months)

Led full lifecycle RMF assessments for FISMA-moderate and FedRAMP systems, developing and executing Security Assessment Plans (SAP). Conducted in-depth control testing against NIST 800-53 controls, authoring Security Assessment Reports (SAR) with severity ratings and mitigation strategies.

NIST 800 53 FISMA FedRAMP Security Control Assessment

Associate Qualified Security Assessor

Viking Cloud

Feb 2021 - Present (4 years 5 months)

Performed assessments aligned with PCI-DSS, mapping controls to RMF equivalents and conducting gap analyses. Created and validated documentation including System Security Plans (SSP) and supported scanning operations with Tenable and Qualys.

PCI DSS Gap Analysis System Security Tenable Qualys Vulnerability Management Data Flow Diagrams

Junior Security Control Assessor

Bincom Enterprises

Dec 2019 - Present (5 years 7 months)

Assisted senior SCAs in system categorization and tailoring baseline controls, reviewing and editing various security plans. Logged and tracked vulnerabilities from Nessus and OpenVAS scans, performing manual verification.

System Security Nessus OpenVas Visio

Education

Degrees, certifications, and relevant coursework

University of Maryland, College Park

Bachelor's Degree, Criminal Justice & Criminology

Studied Criminal Justice & Criminology at the University of Maryland, College Park. Gained foundational knowledge in legal frameworks and societal aspects relevant to security and compliance.