GUC’s IT Department’s Cybersecurity Improvement Team received the 2025 Best of North Carolina Technology Award for Outstanding Leadership and Innovation for its continued work in proactively addressing cybersecurity threats.
Senior IT Server/Security Analyst Brandon Moore, Network Analyst III Chris Hurdle, and IT Infrastructure Manager Allen Watkins, were recognized during the NC Digital Government Summit, hosted by the NC Department of Information Technology for their leadership and innovative work in improving GUC’s cybersecurity.
As a part of their efforts, the team engaged the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA) to perform reviews of processes and technologies that protect electric, gas, and water operations, along with customer data.
The Cybersecurity Improvement Team asked CISA professionals to find vulnerabilities in the GUC cyber system. In an effort to assess vulnerabilities, the CISA team emulated what a system hacker would do.
From that exercise and other assessments, CISA surmised that GUC surpassed its peers in the energy, water, and wastewater cybersecurity sectors.
“This award is a welcome recognition for a team that has demonstrated exceptional leadership and a commitment to safeguarding GUC’s operations and customer data. The project would not have been successful without support and engagement from across GUC,” GUC Director of Information Technology Andy Anderson said.
The team also partnered with ECU students completing capstone projects to identify and address cybersecurity needs at GUC.
The Center for Internet Security and the National Institute of Standards and Technology frameworks were used to guide and gauge the improvements in GUC’s cybersecurity posture, as well.
Allen credited his team for its hard work along with the IT Department’s support during this process.
“I am honored to have led the Greenville Utilities team in earning the Best of NC Technology Award for our Cybersecurity Improvement Initiative,” Allen said. “Through collaboration with ECU, CISA, and our operating departments, we strengthened protections across our critical infrastructure and advanced our security maturity. This recognition highlights the measurable progress made through the hard work and dedication of our team and reinforces our commitment to protecting GUC and the communities we serve.”
Andy read a portion of a letter sent to the IT Cybersecurity Leadership Team from Sen. Steve Jarvis, Vice Chair of the North Carolina General Assembly’s Joint Legislative Committee on Information Technology, celebrating the IT Department’s work in cybersecurity.
“[The GUC IT Department’s] work embodies the very best of public service, provides innovation, efficiency, and a steadfast commitment to excellence. In today’s fast moving technical world, the ability to innovate while still providing highest standards of trust and security is invaluable,” Sen. Jarvis said in the letter.
