Sydney Jackson is an Associate in Mullen Coughlin’s Incident Response practice group, based in New York, and a former government attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS). She focuses her practice on providing Breach Counsel services to organizations of all sizes and across all industry group sectors who have suffered, or are in the midst of, a data privacy and security incident such as a ransomware attack, business email compromise (BEC) or other unauthorized network intrusion.

As “Breach Counsel,” Sydney directs the full investigation and response to a data privacy and security incident. Under attorney-client privilege, she coordinates the forensic investigation to determine the nature and scope of the incident, and once confirmed that the incident is contained, leads incident reporting efforts to applicable entities including law enforcement, the organization’s cyber insurance carrier (if applicable) and industry-specific regulators. Should the incident be found to have put sensitive or protected information at risk, and based off of applicable U.S. state, federal and international privacy laws and regulations, Sydney counsels her clients on their legal and regulatory obligations and assists in effectuating those obligations as required.

Sydney’s government experience, wherein she provided legal support in a variety of roles, is utilized by clients and the Firm alike when responding to formal and informal inquiries from state, federal and industry regulators. Should an organization be faced with regulatory investigation or follow-up stemming from an incident, Sydney is able to provide her insights into a variety of defense options and responses for her clients.

Prior to joining Mullen Coughlin, Sydney was an attorney in the DHS’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Assistant Chief Counsel. There, she provided legal support and for international trade cases and advised on the enforcement of international trade laws, regulations and guidance administered by the CBP.

Sydney also had two federal clerkships with the U.S. Court of Federal Claims’ Office of Special Matters, where she managed a high-volume docket of over 100 cases related to the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. Prior to that, she was a Trial Attorney with the DOJ, litigating immigration cases in federal courts nationwide and advising government agencies on the complex legal issues related to the immigration system.

Sydney earned her J.D. from American University Washington College of Law and a M.A. in International Affairs from American University School of International Affairs. As a law student and graduate student, she held multiple internships with the U.S. Agency for International Development and U.S. Court of International Trade, and was a member of American University’s Tech, Law & Security Program. There, she compiled research on national security and surveillance related to artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.