Gary S. Chan
Reveals the psychology behind social engineering through live demonstrations of influence and human behavior, making the invisible impossible to ignore.
Cybersecurity Strategist
Security Mentalist
Charismatic Keynote Speaker
Gary S. Chan is a performing mentalist known for blending psychology, insight, and a touch of mystery into unforgettable experiences. A lifelong student of magic, he has spent over 25 years mastering the art of reading behavior, predicting outcomes, and revealing hidden truths. His performances are thought-provoking and astonishing, challenging assumptions while staying rooted in the traditions of magical entertainment.
Whether in intimate gatherings or larger venues, Gary's style emphasizes connection, wonder, and the deeper mysteries behind how people think and what they believe.
With a background in both security and human behavior, Gary brings a perspective no other event keynote speaker can match. He has architected anti-fraud systems for state agencies, led information security for a large-cap technology company, and currently serves as Chief Information Security Officer for a large multi-state healthcare system.
His expertise spans behavioral profiling, fraud detection, negotiation, interrogation, and mediation. Gary holds four security certifications and earned a degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT. He served as President of the FBI St. Louis Citizens Academy Alumni Association and Technology Officer for the Greater St. Louis Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.
Gary is the only person who performs Security Mentalism, a discipline he developed to connect cybersecurity and human behavior in a way that audiences will never forget. His use of mentalism demonstrates how influence and deception work, giving people a safe, engaging way to experience when they take advantage of a person's trusting nature.
When you book a keynote speaker or hire a mentalist for your event, you're typically choosing between entertainment and education. Gary delivers both.
One who can predict the future can forge the future
Nobody Saw Security Mentalism Coming
Gary spent decades mastering mentalism and building a career in cybersecurity before he realized they were two sides of the same coin: understanding how people think, predicting what they'll do, and influencing the outcome.
1997
The Spark of Magic
It all started in New Orleans. A magician in a shop stunned Gary by finding the card he chose, and then he was hooked. He begged his mom to buy his first magic trick, took it back home, and wore it out showing anyone who would watch.
A rare Chinese kid in a Louisiana public school, Gary went from never fitting in to being the center of the group while everyone cheered at his amazing talent. The rest came from books and practice, the beginning of a lifelong love of performance, human psychology, and bringing people together.
2004
Think Like a Machine
Gary's second passion is, and always was, computers. He has played with them since childhood and earned the privilege of studying at MIT. In 2004, he graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. MIT sharpened his mind to think like a computer: pure logic and reason.
This stood in stark contrast to magic, which thrives on psychology, perception, and irrationality.
2008
Security Entry Point
In 2008, Gary started his first security job in anti-identity fraud. It marked the true fusion of logic and human insight. His team used computer logic to spot fraudsters, but the real work often boiled down to psychology and perception. There, he learned how people and companies think.
That skill helped propel his career from individual contributor to Chief Information Security Officer of an $11B company. His path spanned general IT to security, for-profit to non-profit. It included leading as President of the FBI St. Louis Citizens Academy Alumni Association, earning four security certifications, training in mediation, negotiation, and interrogation, and mentoring cybersecurity startups for a venture capital fund.
2011
Truth Under Pressure
In 2011, Gary completed formal interrogation training that significantly deepened his understanding of human behavior and the subtle dynamics behind truth and disclosure. He learned how to build rapport quickly, lower defenses, and create conditions where people feel comfortable sharing accurate information.
The training sharpened his ability to read verbal and nonverbal cues, notice shifts in confidence or hesitation, and adjust his approach in the moment. Those skills now shape his high‑stakes security work and his mentalism performances, where guiding conversations and understanding people are just as important as any technique.
2014
Read the Room
Gary completed mediation training through Harvard Law School's Program on Negotiation. It stands as the most impactful class of his life, transforming how he navigates emotional conversations.
The program taught him to ask questions that defuse tension and elicit honest, constructive feedback. It also equipped him to manage his own emotional reactions to criticism, allowing him to listen clearly and embrace growth.
This skill sharpened his ability to read people and grasp their emotional responses to stimuli. On stage, it lets him more quickly spot ideal volunteers, whether those who would play a humorous role or a serious one.
2017
Before It Had a Name
In 2017, Gary served as President of the FBI St. Louis Citizens Academy Alumni Association. This role let him lead a membership group dedicated to giving back to the community through education and outreach.
It was also through this role that he was first approached to perform mentalism for security specialists. That was the seed for what would later become Security Mentalism.
2021
A New Kind of Magic
During the COVID pandemic, live entertainment gigs dried up, giving Gary time to elevate his mentalism in a way others could not easily copy or evolve. He fused his two deepest expertise areas: mentalism and security.
The goal was to create something fresh and credible only he could deliver. His mind flashed to the old FBI request, a magic program suited to their team. Gary took it as a challenge to create a new form of mentalism tailored for security specialists. He crafted an interrogation-themed routine that compared traditional interrogation tactics to a mentalist's psychological approach.
Post-COVID, he performed it for the FBI. They loved it and asked for more. That was the moment that Security Mentalism became real.
2024
Privileged Access
Gary graduated from the FBI's Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) Academy, one of the most selective executive programs in cybersecurity leadership. Only a few hundred leaders nationwide have earned this distinction, reserved for top-tier security leaders tackling national-scale threats.
The on-site training covered advanced strategies in cyber defense, risk governance, and cross-agency collaboration with federal law enforcement. It honed his ability to align enterprise security with broader national priorities, blending operational rigor with strategic foresight.
Today
And for My Next Trick
Today, Gary brings Security Mentalism to audiences around the world. His performances blend live demonstrations of influence and human behavior with real-world cybersecurity insight, making abstract concepts tangible and impossible to forget.
Whether at corporate events, conferences, or leadership summits, Gary's approach is the same: educate through entertainment. Audiences leave with a deeper understanding of how trust is built and broken, how decisions are influenced, and how psychology shapes every interaction.
