TechSpective Podcast

TechSpective Podcast Episode 120   Ads and commercials are a sort of "necessary evil." Aside from the NFL Super Bowl, I don't think anyone is ever anxious to see commercials--and even that has been trending toward more mundane and underwhelming ads for the last few years, in my opinion. Nobody really wants to see the ads, but the ads are what pays the bills and enables the content--which the audie...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 119   If you want to prevent threat actors from infiltrating or compromising your environment, it helps to see things from the threat actor perspective. This concept has been fundamental to cybersecurity for many years--whether it is penetration testing, red teaming, ethical hacking, or other angles. Whatever you call it, the notion is simple enough. Bugcrowd more or l...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 118   "You can't protect what you can't see." The first time someone said that, I am sure it was very profound. It is an obvious statement, but also very powerful in the context of cybersecurity. If you aren't even aware of the hardware assets connected to your network, or the software applications they are running, how can you possibly be aware of any vulnerabilities...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 117   Cybersecurity used to be more of a mystical dark art, but over time, businesses and individuals have come to understand just how critical cybersecurity is, and cybersecurity professionals and vendors have recognized that they need to integrate with and facilitate business productivity rather than pushing security for the sake of security and creating unnecessary...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 116   Getting hacked sucks in all scenarios. In most cases, though, getting hacked is an inconvenience. In some cases, it is deadly. Having your data stolen, or getting your computer bricked by ransomware is annoying. Getting a medical device like an insulin pump hacked might kill you. Christopher Gates, Director of Product Security at Velentium, joins me on this episo...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 115   Adobe has worked with security researchers and managed a vulnerability disclosure or bug bounty program for years. It now has an invite-only Adobe-VIP Bug Bounty program as well, though--granting broader and early access to select researchers to help guide and secure Adobe products. A recent blog post announcing the Adobe-VIP program explains, "The Adobe-VIP priv...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 114   Gaming has come a long way since you had to actually travel to an arcade with a pocket full of quarters (or hope the change machine would actually accept and exchange the wrinkled dollar bills you carried) to play Pac-Man. Gaming today is defined by massive, multi-player, online games where individuals interact with--and sometimes partner with or compete against-...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 113   Do you have a right to privacy? Should you--as a consumer or individual--have control over your personal data, which companies are allowed to collect or access it, and how it is used? It seems reasonable, to be honest. At the very least, consumers want--and expect--transparency. Building trust with customers relies on being transparent about what information is c...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 112   In 2000 Marc Andreessen noted software is eating the world. Fast forward a couple decades, and I think it's fair to say he wasn't wrong. Now that pretty much everything is code, and there are billions upon billions of lines of code, it is also more important to identify and resolve issues in the code to prevent or remove vulnerabilities and flaws that might be ex...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 111   Identity plays a pivotal role for cybersecurity. Threat actors have a variety of tools and methods to crack and compromise credentials, which is why many attacks are--from the perspective of cyber defense--inside attacks. They are executed using valid credentials that have authorization to access or do the things they do. The crux of the issue comes down to both...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 110   Once upon a time, Windows PCs were--by default--the chosen platform for businesses, and Apple computers were for consumers. Companies made exceptions for workers focused on creativity or design, but Apple devices were generally frowned upon at work. When I first started working in IT, I supported an environment with about 200 PCs and about 50 Macs (it was an adve...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 109   I admit that I am cynical in general about customer experience. On the rare occasions I have to call for support or interact with customer service, I feel like it's often an exercise in both frustration and futility. It often takes hours and multiple transfers and escalations just to get to someone who either A) understands what the problem is, and B) actually ha...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 108   Unless you've been camping off the grid for all of 2023 or recently emerged from a year-long coma, you're most likely aware of all of the buzz and hype around generative AI. Tools like ChatGPT, Dall-E, Google's Bard, and countless others have proliferated exponentially and captured the attention of both companies and consumers. Generative AI tools are capable of...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 107   IT security teams have a tough job--made more challenging by the growing complexity of the attack surface and technology landscape and the overwhelming volume of information. They need to be able to accelerate the processing and analysis of data so they can streamline the decision-making and incident response processes. That is where UEBA can help. Kumar Vikramje...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 106   Security analysts spend their days monitoring activity in applications and across the network to identify vulnerabilities, detect attacks, and take the appropriate actions to prevent or mitigate threats. However, a good percentage of the work that is done in a Security Operations Center (SOC) is tedious--tasks that must be done, but hinder the ability to focus on...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 105   It's more or less expected that organizations are "in the cloud" these days in some way, shape, or form, but having a cloud strategy is important. In the early cloud days, moving to the cloud gave organizations a competitive advantage. At this point--with pretty much everyone in the cloud--it's sort of the opposite. Being in the cloud is the default, and any busi...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 104   Organizations invest signficant money and resources in cybersecurity in a constant, 24/7 battle to protect applications and data from cyber adversaries. It's a bit of a cat-and-mouse game that has gone on for decades. Threat actors devise innovative exploits and attack techniques, and new security tools and strategies are introduced to defend against them, so thr...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 103   Security equals compliance--at least in theory, assuming it's effective security. But compliance doesn't necessarily equal security. Igor Volovich, VP of Compliance Strategy at Qmulos, joins me on this episode to talk about the goals and limitations of compliance frameworks and efforts. Some elements of cybersecurity compliance are in the "eye of the beholder," s...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 102   Identity security is crucial for effective cybersecurity. When it comes down to it, many attacks are successful because threat actors are able to somehow steal, hack, or otherwise circumvent identity controls. The Identity Defined Security Alliance (IDSA) is an independent source of thought leadership, expertise, and practical guidance for identity security--comp...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 101   There are many facets to cybersecurity. Organizations seek to prevent or block as much as possible, while also constantly monitoring their environments, and--in most cases--working to detect and respond to any malicious code or behavior that somehow slipped past the outer defenses. Threat hunting is an element of cybersecurity that helps security operations teams...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 100   This is a milestone podcast--the 100th episode. Triple digits. In honor of the 100th episode, I invited the guest who helped launch the whole thing with Episode 001--Malcolm Harkins. Malcolm was CISO at Intel at one time, and served as Chief Security and Trust Officer at Cylance among many other roles. As it happens, Malcolm and I are now coworkers as well. Malco...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 099   Do you like to do jigsaw puzzles? I generally don't have the patience, but my wife is a jigsaw puzzle fanatic. Gathering threat intelligence is a lot like assembling a jigsaw puzzle. Whether you do jigsaw puzzles or not, you probably at least understand the concept enough to know that if I just give you 13 random pieces from a 1,000-piece puzzle and you don't hav...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 098   In theory, cybersecurity is a top priority for most organizations. The actual execution, on the other hand, often leaves a lot to be desired. Security enablement is essential for moving cybersecurity from an aspirational concept to a business reality. Astrid Bailey, a Senior Security Operations Manager on the Security Engagement Team at Adobe, is my guest on this...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 097   Ransomware is one of the top things keeping CISOs and other company executives up at night. A Ransomware.org survey found that 83% consider the risk of getting hit by ransomware to be the same or higher than it was last year--and 84% consider ransomware to be a significant business threat. Cybereason has conducted ransomware surveys over the past couple of years...

TechSpective Podcast Episode 096   Doing your own research makes sense. You should not believe everything you see, or read, or hear. Critical thinking is a crucial skill. It is not only fair to question information and seek out alternative perspectives to determine what is right or true, it is advisable--if not imperative. But, how? Sam Curry, CSO at Cybereason and President of Cybereason Governme...