White hat hacker Maiffret returns to eEye

Security researcher and former Microsoft gadfly Marc Maiffret has returned to the company he started when he was a teenager, eEye Digital Security.

Maiffret had been serving as chief security architect at antimalware firm FireEye since December and will remain on the company's technical advisory board, Maiffret said in an interview on Monday.

"I'm coming back to eEye as chief technology officer to lead the overall technology vision and be involved in day-to-day stuff on the research front," he said.

Asked why he was returning to the company he started in 1998 when he was a mere 17, Maiffret said he has always had a soft spot for eEye.

Maiffret said he met up a couple of months ago with Kevin Hickey, who became CEO of eEye in December.

"We hit it off talking about the vision for the company, especially in the space we're in, vulnerability management," he said. "Maybe because I'm turning 30 in November and thinking about the company I started as a teenager."

Maiffret made a name for himself at eEye finding vulnerabilities in Microsoft software after running away from home and escaping a serious brush with the law. He initially left eEye in 2007 to launch a mobile start-up, Invenio Security, which then merged with consultancy The DigiTrust Group.

He has testified before Congress on security issues, appeared in MTV's "True Life: I'm a Hacker," and was named one of People Magazine's 30 People Under 30 in 2004.