Obituary for Adrien de Beaupre
Adrien passed away of natural causes at his home in Kanata (Ottawa) on December 16, 2023. He was 55. He is survived by his beloved daughter, Maddison; his partner, Carolann; his mother, Barbara; his sister, Lara; his Aunt Ann; his former wife Colleen; his dog Ollie; and by family from BC to Nova Scotia. He was predeceased by his father, Michael.
Adrien was a graduate of Carleton University, Algonquin College, and earned a multitude of in-career technical certificates and diplomas (GSEC, GPEN, GWAPT, GCIA, GCIH, GXPN, OPSA, OPST, MCSE and CISSP certifications). Adrien was a prolific technical author, contributing to the OSSTMM3, Hacking Exposed Linux (3rd Edition), Security Incident Handling Step-by-Step Guide (SANS), the Security Incident Management Capability Maturity Model (Bell) and other vulnerability assessment and security management frameworks as well as methodologies such as SANS courseware.
He began his career working at the Bank of Montreal, but soon switched over to the field of IT security, where he quickly made his name and reputation. He was called in to the Government Operations Centre at Emergency Preparedness Canada on September 11, 2001, where he literally bumped into his aunt, who was also involved in the federal government’s response over that day and over the following weeks. He snuck her a pop.
Adrien was a world-renowned penetration tester and vulnerability assessor. One of the highlights of Adrien's career was being on the vulnerability assessment team for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
Adrien was committed to giving back to the cybersecurity community. He was a founding member of Ottawa B-Sides and Ottawa OWASP. He was a long-term volunteer member of the SANS Internet Storm Center, where he performed incident handling and threat analysis. He was a valued mentor, especially for the historically excluded. Adrien was a diversity champion and a true ally. He recently disclosed his autism diagnosis to the greater community. He was terrified of the stigma associated with Autism and kept it hidden for years, and he disclosed that he was on the spectrum because he realized he was in a position to be a role model and to change the perceptions of neurodivergent people. Adrien wanted people to see the gifts that his Autism afforded him, not the deficits.
Adrien's greatest pride career-wise came from becoming an instructor for SANS. Adrien was a course author and popular instructor. Adrien taught many SANS courses, not just his own, showing his depth and breadth of knowledge in penetration testing, vulnerability assessment, incident handling, and intrusion detection. Adrien felt that teaching at SANS provided him with an opportunity to pay forward the investment his mentors and teachers made to him throughout his career.
Adrien did not suffer from a lack of confidence. One of the things Carolann found especially obnoxious was when he referred to himself jokingly in the third person as "The Adrien" sort of like Madonna or Prince. At some point at SANS, there were two Adriens, but Adrien de Beaupre was, of course, the one that needed no further elaboration. In an OWASP meeting in Dallas a few years ago, there were two more novice penetration testers sitting in front of them talking about taking Adrien's advanced web application penetration testing course in a few weeks. Adrien caught their attention, and they started squealing like 6 year old girls, "It's THE ADRIEN." Obnoxious and embarrassing.
Adrien also harbored a superiority complex regarding Canadian Kinder Eggs. Anytime we'd see one, he'd say, "You realize in your country they can't put the toy inside the egg? They can't trust you people not to eat it."
Adrien was an adventurer at heart. He was known for exploring the international cities he taught in, and he loved to travel with his family and his co-workers. Snorkeling in Antigua. Touring Turkey. Hiking the great wall of China with Maddi and Colleen. Letting the 6 year old choose the dinner restaurant in Venice. Nearly getting stranded in Morocco. Ill advised scooters in Berlin. Gardens in Singapore. Tobogganing in Quebec. Cycling through Holland. Christmas markets in Europe (almost by force, that's Carolann's thing). Gingerbread house decorating contest where we got spanked by a team of 12 year olds. Adrien believed in cultivating experiences and making memories with his loved ones.
He maintained a lifelong interest in Karate and he achieved his black belt in 2014. He also maintained an encyclopedic knowledge and enjoyment of futuristic fantasy novels. He loved well-made knives and swords.
Most of all, he loved his daughter. He was so proud of the resilient, smart, charming, dedicated, and resourceful woman she is becoming. He thought she was perfect. He loved to spend time with her doing anything and nothing. He cherished his memories of her younger years, painting his nails and adorning him with stickers. He loved sharing karate and sword combat with her. He was beyond proud of her skating accomplishments, and he was most proud of the way she approaches her life. He knew Maddi as tenacious and capable, loving and kind, and he wanted to do everything in his power for her success and happiness. His profoundest disappointment, wherever he is, will be that he will not be here in the physical form to support her and see her bright future unfold.
The best thing about Adrien was his capacity to love. When Adrien loved you, there was no doubt. His support was constant, his encouragement sincere. He was so very gentle with us. His confidence in us made us feel confident in ourselves.
Adrien will be sorely missed by his family. We wish to extend our gratitude to the Ottawa Police Service for their professionalism, respect, guidance, and kindness.
Information on arrangements to follow. Donations can be made in Adrien's memory to Cyversity https://www.cyversity.org/
Adrien was a graduate of Carleton University, Algonquin College, and earned a multitude of in-career technical certificates and diplomas (GSEC, GPEN, GWAPT, GCIA, GCIH, GXPN, OPSA, OPST, MCSE and CISSP certifications). Adrien was a prolific technical author, contributing to the OSSTMM3, Hacking Exposed Linux (3rd Edition), Security Incident Handling Step-by-Step Guide (SANS), the Security Incident Management Capability Maturity Model (Bell) and other vulnerability assessment and security management frameworks as well as methodologies such as SANS courseware.
He began his career working at the Bank of Montreal, but soon switched over to the field of IT security, where he quickly made his name and reputation. He was called in to the Government Operations Centre at Emergency Preparedness Canada on September 11, 2001, where he literally bumped into his aunt, who was also involved in the federal government’s response over that day and over the following weeks. He snuck her a pop.
Adrien was a world-renowned penetration tester and vulnerability assessor. One of the highlights of Adrien's career was being on the vulnerability assessment team for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
Adrien was committed to giving back to the cybersecurity community. He was a founding member of Ottawa B-Sides and Ottawa OWASP. He was a long-term volunteer member of the SANS Internet Storm Center, where he performed incident handling and threat analysis. He was a valued mentor, especially for the historically excluded. Adrien was a diversity champion and a true ally. He recently disclosed his autism diagnosis to the greater community. He was terrified of the stigma associated with Autism and kept it hidden for years, and he disclosed that he was on the spectrum because he realized he was in a position to be a role model and to change the perceptions of neurodivergent people. Adrien wanted people to see the gifts that his Autism afforded him, not the deficits.
Adrien's greatest pride career-wise came from becoming an instructor for SANS. Adrien was a course author and popular instructor. Adrien taught many SANS courses, not just his own, showing his depth and breadth of knowledge in penetration testing, vulnerability assessment, incident handling, and intrusion detection. Adrien felt that teaching at SANS provided him with an opportunity to pay forward the investment his mentors and teachers made to him throughout his career.
Adrien did not suffer from a lack of confidence. One of the things Carolann found especially obnoxious was when he referred to himself jokingly in the third person as "The Adrien" sort of like Madonna or Prince. At some point at SANS, there were two Adriens, but Adrien de Beaupre was, of course, the one that needed no further elaboration. In an OWASP meeting in Dallas a few years ago, there were two more novice penetration testers sitting in front of them talking about taking Adrien's advanced web application penetration testing course in a few weeks. Adrien caught their attention, and they started squealing like 6 year old girls, "It's THE ADRIEN." Obnoxious and embarrassing.
Adrien also harbored a superiority complex regarding Canadian Kinder Eggs. Anytime we'd see one, he'd say, "You realize in your country they can't put the toy inside the egg? They can't trust you people not to eat it."
Adrien was an adventurer at heart. He was known for exploring the international cities he taught in, and he loved to travel with his family and his co-workers. Snorkeling in Antigua. Touring Turkey. Hiking the great wall of China with Maddi and Colleen. Letting the 6 year old choose the dinner restaurant in Venice. Nearly getting stranded in Morocco. Ill advised scooters in Berlin. Gardens in Singapore. Tobogganing in Quebec. Cycling through Holland. Christmas markets in Europe (almost by force, that's Carolann's thing). Gingerbread house decorating contest where we got spanked by a team of 12 year olds. Adrien believed in cultivating experiences and making memories with his loved ones.
He maintained a lifelong interest in Karate and he achieved his black belt in 2014. He also maintained an encyclopedic knowledge and enjoyment of futuristic fantasy novels. He loved well-made knives and swords.
Most of all, he loved his daughter. He was so proud of the resilient, smart, charming, dedicated, and resourceful woman she is becoming. He thought she was perfect. He loved to spend time with her doing anything and nothing. He cherished his memories of her younger years, painting his nails and adorning him with stickers. He loved sharing karate and sword combat with her. He was beyond proud of her skating accomplishments, and he was most proud of the way she approaches her life. He knew Maddi as tenacious and capable, loving and kind, and he wanted to do everything in his power for her success and happiness. His profoundest disappointment, wherever he is, will be that he will not be here in the physical form to support her and see her bright future unfold.
The best thing about Adrien was his capacity to love. When Adrien loved you, there was no doubt. His support was constant, his encouragement sincere. He was so very gentle with us. His confidence in us made us feel confident in ourselves.
Adrien will be sorely missed by his family. We wish to extend our gratitude to the Ottawa Police Service for their professionalism, respect, guidance, and kindness.
Information on arrangements to follow. Donations can be made in Adrien's memory to Cyversity https://www.cyversity.org/