Ex-NSA chief Paul Nakasone starts security advisory firm

Retired U.S. Army Gen. Paul M. Nakasone has launched the Nakasone Group, a boutique national security advisory firm that will provide cybersecurity, personal security and geopolitical intelligence services to government leaders, corporations, prominent families and other private clients. He announced the firm on LinkedIn. Nakasone will serve as founder and chairman and Brett Goldstein, the former director of the Defense Digital Service, will serve as chief executive.

The firm plans to offer private cyber defense, family digital security, protection against fraud and impersonation, international travel security, geopolitical and threat intelligence, and executive briefings. Its cyber practice will advise clients on securing home networks, personal devices, digital accounts and connected systems and on protecting online privacy.

Services described by the firm include guidance for protecting devices and communications during international travel, preparation for surveillance and other risks in higher-threat regions, and analysis of geopolitical, economic and security developments that could affect organizations, investments or families.

The advisory team includes former senior officials from the military, intelligence, law enforcement, government technology and private sectors. Named members include former Drug Enforcement Administration chief Anne Milgram; retired Air Force Lieutenant General Charles “Tuna” Moore, a former deputy commander of U.S. Cyber Command; and retired Marine Corps Lieutenant General Matthew Glavy, who formerly commanded Marine Corps Forces Cyberspace Command.

Nakasone served as the 18th director of the National Security Agency and commander of U.S. Cyber Command from 2018 until his retirement in February 2024. He previously led U.S. Army Cyber Command and held senior intelligence and command positions in the United States and overseas. During his tenure he oversaw an expansion of U.S. Cyber Command and a more persistent approach to identifying and disrupting foreign cyber threats.

On LinkedIn he wrote that after more than three decades in uniform he had seen how quickly threats facing individuals, families and organizations can change, and that the firm intends to bring the level of security counsel available at the highest levels of government to private clients, delivered quietly and discreetly.

The firm says it will operate in private markets and provide discreet consulting and briefings that draw on recent government operational experience and private-sector security practice.