Security by Default

Afleveringen

1. Human Resilience with James McQuiggan

   26 oktober 2026 · 35 min

   Afspelen
   In this episode of the Security by Default Podcast, recorded at the tail end of Cybersecurity Awareness Month, host Joe Carson welcomes James McQuiggan, a cybersecurity professional with more than 25 years in IT and security. Lees meer

   James traces his path from Windows 98 tech support to 18 years at Siemens, where he found his real passion: educating people about cyber risk, from grade-school kids to grandparents. That passion led him to university teaching in cyber threat intelligence and six years at a large security awareness training company.

   Then came a one-on-one meeting that turned out to be his director and HR. In about eight minutes, his role was gone. James and Joe, who went through his own redundancy and garden leave, compare notes on the shock, the grief that follows, and the slow road back.

   James explains how he turned the experience into a talk that maps job loss onto incident response: preparation, containment, recovery and lessons learned, plus threat intelligence on your own options. He covers the practical first steps — finances, healthcare and insurance and why within the first week he spoke to around a dozen people in his network.

   The conversation also covers why your next role will most likely come from your peers rather than job bulletins, how speaking about the experience became James's therapy, and how he stays current through deepfake research, the Simply Cyber community and conferences. They close on humor, with James's new joke book, A Megabyte of Jokes, co-written with Mishaal Khan.

   In this episode:

   Why losing a job can feel like the end of a six-year relationship

   The stages of grief after redundancy, and why they aren't linear

   Applying incident response and threat intelligence to your career

   The first 72 hours: finances, healthcare, and calling your network

   Why referrals beat ATS and AI resume filters

   Turning a hard experience into a talk that helps others

   Staying current on AI and deepfakes

   Why humor builds connection in the securi…

2. Same Scams, Cleaner Wrapper: Cybersecurity Awareness Month in the AI Era with Erich Kron

   12 oktober 2026 · 38 min

   Afspelen
   It's Cybersecurity Awareness Month, and Joe Carson is joined by Erich Kron of KnowBe4 to ask whether the classic messages — strong passwords, phishing awareness, MFA, and patching — still hold up. Spoiler: they do, but attackers have upgraded the wrapper. Erich explains why users should ignore deepfake "tells" and focus on emotion, urgency and the request itself, how phishing has moved into Teams, WhatsApp and SMS, and why agentic AI is exploding the number of non-human identities we already struggle to manage. They also cover email bombing, MFA fatigue, mitigation before patches, deepfakes in the courtroom, and the shift from ransomware encryption to data extortion. Lees meer

   Takeaways:

   I assert that classic measures — strong passwords, MFA, phishing awareness, and patching — remain essential against modern threats.

   We must focus on emotion, urgency, and the specific request rather than deepfake technical tells.

   I warn that phishing now spreads through Teams, WhatsApp, SMS, and other chat channels, bypassing email defenses.

   We see attackers using email bombing and MFA fatigue to overwhelm users and force mistaken approvals.

   I recommend rapid mitigation steps before vendor patches arrive, and maintain accurate inventory and segmentation of assets.

   We note that agentic AI and non human identities multiply attack surfaces and complicate identity and permission management.

   I emphasize that extortion of stolen data has eclipsed encryption based ransomware as the primary profit method for attackers.

   Erich Kron — Security Awareness Advocate, KnowBe4

   Erich Kron has worked in IT and security since the 1990s, when his first network ran Windows 3.1 and LANtastic. He has worked across healthcare and manufacturing, and spent around ten years with the US Department of Defense as security manager for the Second Regional Cyber Center, where he served as an Active Directory domain admin during the Army's AD deployment and supported network infrastructure across North America. He l…

3. Passwords, Passkeys & Rogue AI Agents | Credentials in the Age of AI with Evil Mog

   28 september 2026 · 39 min

   Afspelen
   We assert that agentic AI constitutes a profound and immediate threat to passwords, passkeys, and credential stewardship when such agents are afforded unfettered operational or contractual authority without deterministic guardrails. I describe, with technical specificity, how agents that hold passkeys or password-manager access can act autonomously to transact, alter accounts, or execute legally binding operations, and we categorize those risks into task-level, operational, and contractual modes of delegation. We argue that the remediation imperative involves explicit delegation models, ephemeral and auditable identities, and cryptographic assertions that bind an agent’s scope of action to a human owner. I counsel continued adoption of hardened password practices and password managers, combined with resilient offline backups and dual-control or deterministic controls layered atop probabilistic AI systems. We further insist that security-by-default, mandatory auditability, and standards for AI skill and supply-chain review are prerequisites to any safe integration of AI with authentication systems. Finally, I exhort practitioners to prioritize availability, integrity, and accountability alongside confidentiality so that credential resilience endures in an era of accelerating AI capability. We offer clear, practical guidance for individuals and organizations to protect credentials in the age of AI. I recommend using a zero-knowledge password manager and enabling secure backups. Evil Mog affirms that printed or offline copies of critical credentials are valid resilience measures when they are managed and backed up properly. We advise random and unique passwords of appropriate length, routine backups of vaults, and giving trusted delegates access via documented procedures rather than ad hoc sharing. For family and estate planning, we explain how offline copies or delegated access can help manage accounts after death. We also recommend operational controls when using ag… Lees meer

4. When a Simple Breach Became a Crisis: Lessons We Learned | Lukas Hlavicka

   14 september 2026 · 32 min

   Afspelen
   I discuss with Lukas Hlavicka how ordinary security incidents can escalate into full-blown crises when organizations lack preparation, reliable backups, and secure deployment pipelines. We share stark war stories, from backups that were never actually taken to compromised software deployment systems and a ransomware attack that exposed six months of bank fraud. Lukas draws on over a decade of incident response experience, including leadership of a national CSIRT and work in the private sector. We describe common failure points: unknown assets and third‑party links, intertwined IT and OT systems, missing evidence, unclear roles for decision and containment, and compromised CI/CD. We stress clear, practical steps: maintain offline incident plans and backups, map assets and dependencies, secure and monitor deployment pipelines, and practice response with defined authorities. This episode targets any organization that thinks “it won’t happen to us” and seeks concrete lessons to prevent incidents from becoming crises. Lees meer

   Takeaways:

   I learned that many incidents become crises because organizations do not know what assets they own or how they connect to third parties.

   We must keep offline backups and verify that backups are actually taken and restorable before incidents occur.

   I saw attackers abuse cloud managed security products and deployment pipelines to gain full network access quickly.

   We found that unclear roles and slow approval processes delay containment and allow the attacker to spread further.

   I observed that organizations often destroy evidence or change systems in ways that hinder forensic investigations.

   We recommend practicing incident response, keeping plans offline, and retaining institutional memory to avoid repeating past mistakes.

   I noted cases where ransomware accidentally revealed long running fraud and showed the need to follow financial trails in investigations.

   We must monitor CI/CD and software supply chains continuously because compromise …

5. From Legacy to Modern PAM: A Migration Playbook with Erik Siebler

   31 augustus 2026 · 48 min

   Afspelen
   Navigating the intricate landscape of identity security has evolved dramatically over the past two decades. Once characterized by a mere username and password, the contemporary environment demands that employees manage an astonishing array of digital identities—approximately one hundred per individual, not accounting for the emerging complexities introduced by agentic AI. Lees meer

   Joe Carson engages Erik Siebler, a seasoned professional with fifteen years of experience in Identity Governance Administration (IGA), Privileged Access Management (PAM), and authentication, to unravel the concept of 'legacy' within identity security. They delve into the defining attributes of legacy PAM systems, which are inherently infrastructure-bound, protocol-heavy, and tailored for a bygone era dominated by servers and routers. Erik elucidates the common pitfalls organizations encounter, particularly the tendency to misinterpret modern PAM solutions as mere expensive password managers, thus neglecting the essential integration of security into existing workflows to achieve frictionless access.

   As the dialogue progresses, the focus shifts to the forefront of the identity security discussion: agentic AI. Erik articulates a nascent failure pattern in which one AI agent, denied access, may exploit another to circumvent restrictions, thereby complicating the landscape of privileged escalation. This new paradigm necessitates a reassessment of traditional security measures, as privilege escalation becomes increasingly relevant not only to attackers but also to the automated processes within organizations. The episode culminates in a practical migration playbook, emphasizing the importance of product selection, side-by-side rollouts, and key-user engagement, ultimately aiming to equip listeners with actionable insights for effectively transitioning from legacy PAM solutions to modern frameworks.

   Takeaways:

   The evolution of identity management has transitioned from simple usernames and passwords …

6. Navigating the Convergence of Physical Security and Digital Access | Daniel Raines

   17 augustus 2026 · 30 min

   Afspelen
   Daniel Raines, a luminary in the realm of electronic security, shares his extensive journey through the intricate landscape of physical security and digital access. With three decades of experience, he has transitioned from hands-on installation of access control systems to software development, addressing vulnerabilities and enhancing security measures. Our discourse delves into the convergence of physical and digital security, exploring the nuances of vulnerability disclosure and the industry's response to emerging threats. Raines elucidates the complexities of hard-coded encryption keys and the imperative for robust security practices, particularly as the industry shifts towards mobile credentials and biometric solutions. This episode serves as a profound exploration of security's evolving nature, emphasizing the significance of adapting to technological advancements and fostering a culture of continuous learning and improvement. Lees meer

   Daniel Raines' extensive career within the electronic security industry, spanning over three decades, serves as a testament to the evolving landscape of physical security and digital access. Initially immersed in the practical aspects of the field, Raines dedicated the first fifteen years to the installation of physical access control systems, including surveillance cameras and biometric solutions. However, he subsequently transitioned into software development, focusing on creating robust systems for access control and security research. This shift was catalyzed by his encounters with software vulnerabilities, which sparked a deep dive into ethical hacking and vulnerability disclosure. Raines' narrative illustrates not only his personal journey but also the critical intersection of physical and digital security, emphasizing the need for improved practices in vulnerability reporting and response within the industry.

   The discussion between Daniel and the host, Joseph Carson, delves into the intricacies of vulnerability disclosure in th…

7. L0pht Legend Chris Wysopal on the Evolution of Application Security

   3 augustus 2026 · 52 min

   Afspelen
   Chris Wysopal, a distinguished figure in the realm of cybersecurity and a celebrated L0pht legend, engages in a profound dialogue with Joe Carson, delving into his remarkable journey from scavenging for Unix manuals to pioneering modern application security. Central to the discussion is the evolution of application security practices, particularly as they pertain to the emergence of artificial intelligence in coding. Wysopal recounts the storied ascent of the L0pht, traversing through pivotal roles at @stake and Symantec, ultimately culminating in the establishment of Veracode. The episode further explores the implications of AI-generated code on security, shedding light on the challenges and opportunities that this technological advancement presents for the cybersecurity landscape today. Listeners are invited to glean insights from Wysopal's extensive experience, which not only reflects on the past but also poses critical questions about the future of cybersecurity practices in an increasingly automated world. Chris Wysopal, a luminary in the realm of cybersecurity, recounts his remarkable journey from the nascent days of hacking to the forefront of application security. He shares anecdotes of his early experiences, such as dumpster diving for Unix manuals and the camaraderie fostered within the L0pht, a hacker collective that became a beacon of innovation and activism in the 1990s. Wysopal's narrative is interspersed with reflections on the evolution of cybersecurity and the societal implications of technology, particularly as he transitioned from the L0pht to @stake and subsequently co-founding Veracode. The conversation delves into the intricacies of application security, the challenges posed by AI-generated code, and the pressing need for a paradigm shift in how security is integrated into the software development lifecycle. This episode is a compelling exploration of Wysopal's contributions to the field and his insights into the future of cybersecurity in an … Lees meer

8. Ransomware Unmasked: Inside the World's Biggest Cybercrime Gang | Geoff White

   20 juli 2026 · 39 min

   Afspelen
   The discourse surrounding ransomware takes center stage as we engage with investigative journalist Geoff White, whose extensive research delves into the notorious Conti Ransomware gang. This episode elucidates the profound implications of ransomware attacks, which have escalated beyond mere data encryption to encompass severe extortion tactics that threaten the integrity of personal and organizational data alike. White articulates the critical need for public awareness regarding the mechanisms and repercussions of ransomware, especially in light of recent high-profile attacks that have reverberated across various sectors in the United Kingdom. Lees meer

   Furthermore, we explore the intricate dynamics of cybercrime, including the intersection of state-sponsored hacking and organized crime, revealing how these elements coexist and influence one another. In shedding light on the inner workings of the Conti gang, we aim to equip our listeners with the knowledge necessary to navigate this complex and evolving threat landscape effectively. The exploration of ransomware, particularly through the lens of the Conti Ransomware gang, presents a multifaceted narrative that delves into the complexities of modern cybercrime. Investigative journalist Geoff White, known for his extensive work in exposing organized crime and technology intersections, articulates the profound implications of ransomware on both corporate and individual levels.

   This episode sheds light on the alarming trend where ransomware has transitioned from mere data encryption to more sophisticated extortion tactics. The discussion is framed within the context of recent high-profile attacks on major UK entities, illustrating how these breaches have penetrated public awareness and sparked discourse on cybersecurity. White elucidates the significance of the unprecedented leak of 300,000 internal messages from the Conti gang, offering a rare insight into their operational mechanics and ethical considerations. This leak has …

9. The Voice of the Customer: Why Listening Beats Selling with David Muniz

   7 juli 2026 · 34 min

   Afspelen
   The paramount focus of this podcast episode is the critical necessity of amplifying the voice of the customer in the contemporary business landscape. I engage in a profound dialogue with David Muniz from Segura, exploring the integral role that understanding customer pain points plays in the provision of effective solutions. We delve into the importance of listening attentively to customers, rather than hastily advancing towards solutions based on assumptions. This conversation elucidates the vital connection between customer feedback and organizational success, emphasizing that a true comprehension of customer needs fosters trust and enhances the overall customer experience. As we navigate this insightful discourse, we uncover best practices and strategies for harnessing customer feedback to drive meaningful engagement and ultimately, success in the marketplace. David Muniz, a seasoned professional from Segura, joins the Security by Default podcast to delve into the significance of the customer's voice in shaping business strategies and solutions. The discourse initiates with an exploration of the fundamental need for businesses to prioritize understanding the customer's unique challenges and pain points before hastily proposing solutions. Muniz articulates that an effective customer success strategy hinges upon the ability to listen actively and empathetically to clients, thereby enabling organizations to tailor their offerings to meet the specific needs of their clientele. Through a series of poignant examples and insights gained from his extensive experience in customer relations, Muniz emphasizes that fostering a genuine connection with customers not only enhances the overall experience but also cultivates loyalty and trust within the marketplace. As the conversation unfolds, Muniz elaborates on the necessity of balancing analytical frameworks with qualitative insights derived from direct customer interactions. He stresses that while market analysts provide va… Lees meer

10. Why Identity Is Becoming Every CISO's Biggest Challenge | Vlad Shapiro

    23 juni 2026 · 44 min

    Afspelen
    Vlad Shapiro, a distinguished mathematician turned identity management expert, articulates his transformative journey in this episode, offering profound insights into the intersection of identity and business. He elucidates how the realm of identity has evolved into a critical pillar for organizational functionality, emphasizing that without effective identity management, business operations may falter. Our discussion delves into the implications of this evolution, particularly the necessity for board members to prioritize identity governance alongside traditional business strategies. Furthermore, we explore the pressing gaps within the current identity landscape, including the challenges posed by a lack of standardization and the imperative for innovative thinking to navigate an increasingly complex digital environment. Shapiro's reflections not only highlight the significance of identity management in contemporary business but also underscore the need for a collaborative approach that integrates technological advancements with ethical considerations for future generations. Lees meer

    In this episode of the Security by Default podcast, host Joe Carson engages with Vladislav Shapiro, who shares his journey from a mathematician to an identity management expert. They discuss the evolution of identity management, its growing importance in business, and the innovations shaping the future of identity technology. The conversation emphasizes the need for a business-oriented approach to identity, the gaps in current practices, and the ethical considerations in technology development. In this conversation, Joseph Carson and Vladislav Shapiro explore the complexities of AI governance, drawing parallels with nuclear energy management. They discuss the importance of control mechanisms, the role of identity in AI, and the emerging threats related to computational workload theft. The conversation emphasizes the need for continuous learning in a rapidly evolving technological landscape and…

Alle 42 afleveringen →