Lessons from the School of Security Hard Knocks

Today's guest is Roland Cloutier, CISO at TikTok. Patience is key. This is just one of the many lessons to be learned from this week’s episode. Roland discusses his current role and responsibilities as TikTok CISO, how he has advanced the security capabilities within TikTok, his message when recruiting new security practitioners, the differences between working as a CISO in a premier payroll proce...

Today's guest is Suzanne Kelly, CEO/Producer of The Cipher Brief. "If we are afraid of failure, we will never succeed." In this episode, Suzanne discusses the vision and creation behind the Cipher Brief, the top national security issues we are currently facing, the threat that China poses, her book: "Master of War: Blackwater USA’s Erik Prince and the Business of War", if cyber offensive work shou...

Today's Guest is Bryan Ware, founder and CEO of Next5. "The best defense is a good offense." In this episode, Bryan discusses his current role at Next5, the history behind co-founding Digital Sandbox, how to approach low probability events with high consequences, his work at CISA, the past, present, and future of cybersecurity, election systems' security, AI, and as always, his toughest lesson lea...

Today's Guest is Vijaya Kaza, Chief Security Officer, Head of Engineering & Data Science for Trust & Safety at Airbnb. In this episode, Vijaya discusses her current role and duties at Airbnb and as a board member at Knock, the importance of automation and AI, relevant use cases, best practices, and where improvements are needed within these fields, how gender impacts working in the technol...

Today's Guest is Duncan Woodbury, Founder and CEO of Dream Team. One part entrepreneur, one part security researcher. In this episode, Duncan discusses what he's doing today, some of the major cybersecurity threats to critical infrastructure, the dangers of recovery time from an attack, the difference between protecting OT vs. IT, why red teaming and pen-testing are so important, what keeps him up...

Today's Guest is Dr. Rebecca Wynn, Global Cybersecurity & Strategy Consulting at Click Solutions Group. "How can we be a part of the fabric without disturbing the fabric?" In this episode, Rebecca discusses how she defines the role of a CISO, how she believes we should "push the envelope of cybersecurity", working with companies that have experienced data breaches, what it takes to build a goo...

Today's Guest is Harold Smith, CEO of Monkton, Inc. "Too focused on the WHAT IF and not focused on WHAT WE CAN DO." In this episode, Harold discusses how Monkton brings mobility to the military and DoD, some use case examples, the certification process, his background and current work in mobile applications, how enterprise mobile security has changed over the years, and as always, his toughest les...

Today's Guest is Michael Shinn, CEO of Atomicorp. "Being compliant is not the same thing as being secure." In this episode Michael discusses the background of his company, the daily challenges they take on, his knowledge around federal regulations, his previous work in the White House, his first computer, what keeps him up at night, and of course, his toughest lesson learned.

Today's Guest is Tina Williams-Koroma, Owner/President of TCecure, LLC. "I see challenges as opportunities." What does a life-long entrepreneur look like? Look no further! In this episode, Tina discusses how to deal with breaks, Governor Hogan's Cybersecurity Summit, patterns to better address critical infrastructure, how all of her degrees aid her current role, her book: "Our Father's Business: P...

Today's Guest is Jim Routh, Advisor & Investor at SYN Ventures. While stepping away from full-time CISO duties, Jim Routh hasn't slowed down. In this episode, Jim tells us what he's been doing since leaving Mass Mutual, what he looks for when engaging with new companies, why he began working with startups. He also discusses the differences between serving as the CISO of larger versus a smaller...

Today's Guest is Lucian Niemeyer, CEO of Building Cyber Security. Cyber risks, ransomware, and attackers! Oh my! In this episode, Lucian discusses his organization, the blending of IT and OT, the gravity of our current cybersecurity situation, the morals around ransome, how to reduce ransomware attacks, what keeps him up at night, and you guessed it, his toughest lesson learned. 

Today's Guest is Heather Dahl, CEO of Indicio.tech. Broadcast journalist turned tech CEO? What could be cooler? This week's episode features Heather Dahl, CEO of Indicio.tech. In this episode we learn about the founding of Endicio, decentralized identity, where regulators are doing well and where they need improvement, how Heather's early career as a broadcast journalist led to her current role, a...

Today's Guest is Dan Doney, CEO of Securrency. Want to better understand the connection between blockchain and cryptocurrency? Craving a wealth of information? In this episode, Dan discusses how he founded his company, Securrency, what they do, his foundations in security, what markets are right for cryptocurrency, the most important facts to know about blockchain, the geopolitical implications of...

Today's Guest is Scott King, VP & CISO at Encore Capital. Are you thinking about entering the cybersecurity field? Then this is the episode for you! Scott discusses his background and transition to his new role as CISO, the biggest trends in the industry right now (HINT: ransomware attacks!), the best procedures for vulnerability and crisis management, the importance of ISACs, the appeal of wo...

Today's Guest is Nick Andersen, CISO at Lumen Technologies. Want to hear from someone who has managed security risk from all angles? Look no further than Nick Andersen. In this episode, Nick discusses Lumen Technologies and his role there, operating under the assumption of an inevitable attack, his work with CESER within the DOE, the recent ransomware attacks, the recent Executive Order, our natio...

Today's Guest is Mark Ruchie, CISO at Entrust. Do you want to be more up-to-date on all things cybersecurity? This is the episode for you! Mark discusses Entrust and his role there, how security solutions have evolved over the last few decades, which changes excite him, how he got his start, his time in the Air Force, his thoughts on the recent Executive Order, the ever-changing profile of the att...

Today's Guest is Sam Crowther, Founder of Kasada. Have you ever noticed a missing link within an industry and wanted to create a company to fill that gap? Meet Sam Crowther. In this episode, Sam discusses Kasada's founding and mission of "restoring trust in the internet", bot mitigation, how he got his start, the importance of confidence and exposure to problems, and as always, his toughest lesson...

Today's Guest is Mark Loepker, Education Director at the National Cryptologic Museum Foundation. Have you ever wanted to explore a career in national security or cybersecurity? This is the episode for you! Mark discusses his rich history working within the security arena, from his early days protecting the “Star Wars” program to his experience leading international working groups to driving the Na...

Today's Guest is Bob Carver, Principal Cybersecurity Threat Intelligence and Analytics at Verizon. How did Bob Carver become the first security employee at Verizon Wireless? Hint: he credits Paris Hilton! In this episode, Bob discusses his current responsibilities at Verizon, maintaining a relationship between hunt teams and threat intelligence, how botnets have evolved over the years, the evoluti...

Today's Guest is Gerald Beuchelt, CISO at Sprinklr. "Security, security, security." Though his roles may have changed he maintains the fundamentals of security remain the same even when the environment has evolved. In this episode, Gerald discusses his new role at Sprinklr and what he hopes to accomplish while there, how his past experiences and educational background inform his new role, open sou...

Today's Guest is Janine Darling, founder and CEO of STASH Global Inc. ALERT: Red hot data! Why should you protect your data? In this episode, Janine discusses her journey to establishing her organization, compliance programs, GDR, and much more!

Today's Guest is Mikko Karikytö, Chief Product Security Officer at Ericsson. Have you ever wondered what it is like to be the Chief Product Security Officer at Ericsson? Today's your lucky day. Meet Mikko Karikytö. He has risen through the ranks and leads team through PSIRT, 5g, and zero trust security initiatives. In this episode, learn how security has changed over the course of his career, what...

Today's Guest is Paul Rosenzweig, Senior Fellow at the R Street Institute. In this episode, Paul discusses what he is currently working on, his work with National Resiliency through the Aspen Institute, what metrics he believes should be used, his theories of trust around hardware and software systems, his thoughts on zero-trust and 5G, his recommendations for our current administration, the poten...

Today's Guest is Larry Maccherone, Distinguished Engineer of DevSecOps Transformation at Comcast. In this episode, Larry discusses what he is currently working on at Comcast, the importance of adding security into the DevOps process, how to motivate developers to adopt security, how he measures programs going forward, what are the greatest security challenges that we are facing, what inspired his...

Today's Guest is Tanner Johnson, Principal Analyst of Data Security at Omdia. In this episode, Tanner discusses his current research agenda, recent trends in IoT security, the risks/trends/threats associated with data security, how COVID will affect us moving forward, what keeps him up at night, and his toughest lesson learned.