LtCol Hagestad is an internationally recognized & respected authority on the People's Republic of China's use of computer and information network systems as a weapon. He speaks internationally on the subject of China's hegemony in the information age. In 2012, LtCol Hagestad's first book "21st Century Chinese Cyber Warfare" debuted. In 2013 he published another seminal work about the People's Republic of China's Cyber Activities "Operation Middle Kingdom: China's Use of Computers & Networks as a Weapon System." In 2014 LtCol Hagestad published a third work "Chinese Information Warfare Doctrine Development 1994" LtCol Hagestad provides current cyber threat assessments to international defense, intelligence and law enforcement entities. He speaks both domestically and internationally on strategic information security threats Chinese Cyber Threat. LtCol Hagestad's education includes a Bachelor of Arts in Mandarin Chinese, with minor emphasis in Classical Chinese and Modern Japanese, University of Minnesota. He earned a Master of Science in Military Strategy from the US Marine Corps Command & Staff College in 2002. He holds a Master of Science in Security Technologies from the College of Science & Engineering, University of Minnesota and a Master of Science in the Management of Technology from the Technological Leadership Institute, University of Minnesota.