Kat DeLorean Seymour is a proudly autistic, female founder of DNG Motors Legacy Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit focused on empowering students towards careers that align with their passions. Kat built DNG Motors to honor her father John DeLorean’s legacy and to continue his mission to empower everyone to Live their Dream through mentorship, opportunity and support.

Kat has been a technologist and cybersecurity expert for over 25 years but has always called herself a mentor first. Through her out-of-the-box thinking and courage to take chances, she has left an indelible mark on the cybersecurity industry by changing her organization’s approach to security. During her tenure in the field she has championed many firsts, such as using tools like Splunk to identify security risks, initiating cross-team collaboration programs, and creating a Red Team mentorship program. Kat’s first love has always been helping others find their way and paying forward the mentorship she received to find her own career success. Today she does that through DNG Motors, which she calls a Dream Empowerment company fueled by automobiles.

Thank you, Kat, for sharing your career journey, insights, and advice for the next generation of women in cybersecurity!

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My cybersecurity journey began before I knew it could become a career. At 18, I was modeling in New York City by day and spending my nights playing online wargames and old-school capture-the-flags (CTFs). Back then, I thought ethical hackers were bad guys who had been caught and recruited by the FBI. It turns out they’re often computer nerds who love technology and never stop learning.

I entered technology through an intensive internship that exposed me to nearly every system the company used and showed me how those systems supported the business. That broad foundation became invaluable in cybersecurity.

My first role was as a junior programmer working with an outdated scripting language. When I saw an opportunity to improve the process with .NET, I created a presentation and pitched it to management. They approved the idea, teaching me an important lesson: if you see a better way to do something, speak up and take the chance.

I also learned that technical skills are only part of success. I built relationships across teams by asking questions, offering support, following up, and expressing gratitude. In cybersecurity, those relationships can make the difference between a delayed response and a fast, effective recovery.

Those connections led me to new roles, including an end-to-end generalist position where I led technical issues from triage through resolution. While working a security incident, I caught the attention of a senior security leader who recruited me to join the Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) defense team— even though I had no direct experience.

Before the interview, I studied everything I could about networking and DDoS attacks. When I didn’t know an answer, I said, “I don’t know, but here’s what I do know,” and then worked through my reasoning. That approach demonstrated my foundational knowledge, curiosity, and ability to learn. Nearly every role I pursued was outside my existing experience, but a willingness to learn repeatedly opened doors.

My development background and cross-team relationships later led me to the Web Application Firewall (WAF) team. After another team introduced me to Splunk, I helped pioneer its use as a security tool within the organization. During the cyberattacks known as Operation Ababil, Splunk helped us gather actionable intelligence to support the FBI.

Wanting to understand threats more deeply, I sought mentorship from the Red Team and spent hundreds of hours practicing through CTFs. My persistence, curiosity, and commitment eventually earned me an invitation to join the team—another opportunity teenage Kat never imagined was possible.

Today, I am the founder of DNG Motors Legacy Foundation, a nonprofit “Dream Empowerment company fueled by automobiles.” We help students explore careers connected to their passions and find the programs, opportunities, and mentors that can help them succeed.

With AI expanding and more organizations moving to the cloud, this is an exciting time to enter cybersecurity. Ask questions, build relationships, find mentors, and take chances. You never know how far you can go until you try.