Bare Knuckles and Brass Tacks

This week we're featuring a Best Of edition, packed with the gold from episodes past. We were away at Black Hat last week, and we're gearing up for the start of Season 3! This episode features: Dr. Chase Cunningham on Zero Trust Sarah Breathnach on why whitepapers need to go Chas Larios are connecting with practitioners Adrian Wood on the securing the ML development pipeline Mari Galloway on break...

Why are so many cybersecurity company founders so bad at talking about their own products?! This week we're joined by Elliot Volkman and Doug Landis to talk about how they used storytelling training to transform one company’s message to its customers! In this episode: 🤦‍♂️ Why so many founders are terrible at talking about their own products 🎭 The power of storytelling vs. spewing facts and stat...

On the show this week: Reanna Schultz, SOC Team Lead and all-around badass, talks about life in the trenches of cybersecurity operations. George K and George A talk to Reanna about: 🎯 What vendors get wrong about SOC life (hint: it's not all about alert fatigue) 🔍 The importance of integrating new tools with existing processes 🤝 Building authentic relationships in the cybersecurity community 💪...

Justin Merhoff, Director of InfoSec, and Florian Beijers, a blind web developer, join the show to talk about accessibility in cybersecurity. This week the Americans with Disabilities Act turns 34! George K and George A talk to Justin and Florian about: 🔍 The current state of accessibility in cybersecurity and the challenges faced by practitioners with disabilities 🧠 How AI and assistive technolo...

What does it really take to break into cyber? Mari Galloway jumps into the ring and brings her 15+ years of experience to bear. George K and George A talk to Mari about: 🤔 The evolution of the cybersecurity industry and the challenges faced by women and minorities 😒 The rise of influencer culture in cybersecurity and what we’re NOT telling newcomers 🤝 The mission and growth of the Women's Socie...

CEO Carolina Ruiz jumps into the ring to talk about leading cyber consultancy, the value of diverse skill sets, and how she memorized ISO 27001 in a weekend! 😳 George K and George A talk to Carolina about: 🤔 The evolving threat landscape and its impact on cybersecurity strategies 🎓 Addressing the skill shortage in cybersecurity and innovative ways to tackle it 📜 The implications of new legisla...

Hacker and researcher Adrian Wood (threlfall), an expert red teamer joins the show to talk about using supply chain attack techniques to poison AI models. This is the cutting edge, and most organizations are entirely unprepared. George K and George A talk to Adrian about: 🛡️ The practical challenges and misconceptions around AI threats ⛓️ How attacking ML models is similar to supply chain attacks...

Break through? No, PUNCH through the AI hype in cybersecurity this week’s guest, Mani Keerthi , Field CISO. George K and George A talk to Mani about: 🥴 Making sense of AI, GenAI, LLMs and why clarity is lacking right now 🐍 Questions security teams should ask to separate snake oil from legit use cases 🤖 How the AI tech stack differs from IT tech stacks and why that matters 🚀 What the trinity of...

Bonus! Chas Larios shares her 7 tips for cybersecurity marketers on how to earn security buyers' respect and trust. These are low-cost, high-return changes teams can make today! This month: All profits from Pride shirt sales will be donated to LGBTQ organizations Shop today: www.bkbtpodcast.shop ————————— Support the show! ✅ Subscribe and share your fave episode on LinkedIn ⭐️ Leave us a rating...

This week, Chas Larios of Anvilogic joins the show to about her approach to winning practitioners' trust through respect for their time and attention. George K and George A talk to Chas about: 🚀 Building brands on principles and the importance of giving back to the cyber community 🧠 How her technical Infosec background informs her marketing 😳 How she hires, and why resumes are the LAST thing sh...

Longtime cybersecurity leader Peter Schawacker joins us the show to talk about radical zeal, global talent, and creating safe spaces for queer communities. George K and George A talk to Peter about: 👨‍🎤 How his punk rock roots and hacker mentality inform his approach to cyber and playing to win 🌏 Cultivating and employing global talent 🏳️‍🌈⚧️ Creating the Queer in Cyber community 🔍His new cyb...

Angela Brown and Amber DiPippa join the podcast to discuss their scholarship initiative supporting LGBTQ+ individuals pursuing cybersecurity. George K and George A talk to Ang and Amber about: 📚 The scholarship's origins and its goals for supporting LGBTQ+ cybersecurity students 🌈 The realities and financial hardships unfairly leveled at queer communities 🤝 Practical advice for authentic allysh...

Dr. Chase Cunningham, aka Dr. Zero Trust, joins the show to talk Zero Trust credibility, the state of leadership in cyber, and more! George K and George A talk to Chase about: ⚓️ His unlikely journey from Navy engineer to cybersecurity expert 🛡️ The evolution and future of the zero trust model in combating modern threats 📚 Insights from his latest book on leadership 🏎️ And perhaps a new land spe...

Ryan Heartfield — AI PhD and now founder and CEO of Exalens — jumps into the ring to talk about moving from academia to cybersecurity startupland, and his mission to transform OT security. George K and George A talk to Ryan about: 💡How his vendor pains as an operator now inform his own GTM strategy 🤖 The hype and reality of AI in cybersecurity, and why understanding solution and model limitation...

This is a special episode, recorded live at the Mind Over Cyber Networking Breakfast and Mindfulness Workshop at RSA Conference 2024. George A was called away for CISO things, but I had a chance to sit down with three guests who wanted to share their stories of resilience: challenges to their mental wellbeing and also the strategies and frameworks they use on the regular to navigate those challeng...

Longtime listener Sarah Breathnach jumps in the hot seat! Sarah shares her unique (and refreshing) perspective on cybersecurity marketing. George K and George A talk to Sarah about: 🌐 The critical balance between being thought-provoking and respectful in content creation 👥 Building an audience and the importance of credibility and authenticity 🔮 How to stand out in the traditional, lead-gen hea...

We’re at RSA in San Fran this week! Things we’re looking forward to: 🧠The Mind Over Cyber Networking Breakfast and Mindfulness Workshop! 🎙️ Sitting down with folks to record "Stories of Resilience", capturing practitioners’ personal experiences with challenges to mental wellbeing. 💪The "Ally Armband" Challenge: How we’re pushing back on sexual harassment at cybersecurity conferences! 🛍️🚀The BKB...

Denis Villeneuve jumps into the ring to share what he's learned working with clients across a storied MSSP career! George K and George A talk to Denis about: 🚀 His journey through tech giants and what drives cybersecurity at a large scale. 🎨 The art of client interaction and managing big transformations in cyber security. 🤝 Building trust and transparency with clients, especially post-incident....

🔊 New episode! Charles Payne occupies the unique position of being both a CISO and a conference organizer. What’s it like in the middle of this weird Venn diagram? George K and George A talk to Charles about: 🎯 The satisfaction and challenges of working with Big 4 consultancies vs. independent contracting 🤝 Building long-term relationships in the B2B sector and the unique approach of the Horizo...

We’ve gained a lot of new listeners in the last two months. Thank you! So, here is a best of episode to catch up on key ideas and conversations you might have missed including: Advice for MSSPs How to remain your authentic self How CISOs can level up their security speak with leadership teams Advice for sales and marketing directly from a CISO How to chase the roles that provide you the most oppor...

💥 Amber DeVilbiss jumps behind the mic to drop bombs on her cyber journey and her commitment to making technology accessible through her non-profit, Teach Kids Tech. George K and George A talk to Amber about: 🔍 How her operator background has informed her sales career. 🤝 Addressing and overcoming industry stereotypes around being a woman on the technical side. 🌐 The founding of Teach Kids Tech...

✊ The sales revolution will not be televised. Jessica Crytzer, CRO at LimaCharlie, jumps into the ring to give the sales leader perspective on what’s changing in cyber! George K and George A talk to Jessica about: 💥 Her recipe for being bold in sales leadership, and why the models of the past do not work well for startups today. 🎯 Why the CISO is probably not your target, and how to engage buye...

The triumphant return of Kayla Cytron-Thaler! Kayla returns with fresh insights from changes in her career path. In this episode, George K and George talk to her about: 🔄 Embracing change in career paths, highlighting the value of detachment and sometimes taking steps “backward” to leap forward. 🎯 Why she doesn’t want to use AI and why her authentic and personalized outreach strategies work so w...

🔥 New episode alert! Diving deep into the world of marketing with Clark Barron, the man, the myth, the flamethrower. George K and George A talk to Clark about: 🥷Ronin: Why he created his own Marketing-as-a-Service platform and the gaps it aims to bridge in the tech marketing landscape. 🔍 The moment he realized how disconnected his marketing practice was from cybersecurity buyers 🏭 The marketin...

🚀 Launching a ballistic payload of insight at your brainbox! Royce Markose jumps into the ring with over 20 years experience, from auditing mainframes, to Fortune500 enterprise infosec, and now to vCISO. George K and George A talk to Royce about: 🤔 What’s changed for SecOps leaders and how they should approach career growth 🎱 How to break into cyber, and how it’s different today than when he st...