Comcast raids West Coast for another tech executive

With more Comast product and subscriber data online, the Philadelphia company has been reinforcing its security practices to prevent information thefts.

Comcast recently announced it has hired Noopur Davis as senior vice president of product security and privacy, reporting to Comcast Cable chief technology officer Tony Werner. Davis had been vice president of global quality at chip-manufacturing giant Intel.

Werner, also an executive vice president, described the Noopur hire as "part of my binge for good talent and I think she's fantastic."

Comcast has been raiding the West Coast tech industry for employees as the company strengths its bench of engineers and technicians to compete with Google, Apple and others. Last year, Comcast hired work-out maniac Chris Satchell from Nike's headquarters as head of product development. He also reports to Werner. Prior to Nike, Satchell had been a lead manager on Microsoft's Xbox program.

The threats to Comcast's data are now greater with more sophisticated hackers and more Comcast data online with the cloud-based X1 cable box.

Comcast confirmed late last year that hundreds of thousands of subscriber accounts had been compromised and the information available for sale on the Internet. Comcast said at the time that its systems hadn't been breached and attributed the massive data theft to a compromised third-party site or malware.

"Noopur brings tremendous experience and unique perspective to this vital role," Werner said in a statement. "Her longstanding leadership in the areas of product quality and product security make her the ideal person to lead a team that will keep security at the forefront of our design and development process."