First Watch Podcast

Today, my guest is Nick Mullen, Information Security Governance Manager at Mutual of Omaha. Nick and I met over LinkedIn and a mutual affiliation with the lessons of mental resilience offered by Stoic philosophy. I wanted to talk to Nick about how his unconventional path into cyber, coupled with 2000 year old philosophy, has equipped him for a career in infosec.Follow Nick on LinkedIn.

This is First Watch from SafeGuard Cyber. Today, my guest is Tasha Holloway, a self-described cybersecurity nerd on a quest to take over the world. And indeed, she seems set to conquer this year's conference circuit, by setting a goal of attending one security event every month. I spoke with Tasha at RSA, to learn more about her journey, and get more details on her conference tour playbook, including steps for newcomers looking to travel and connect for the first time.Follow Tasha on LinkedIn.

Some Spotlight guests are right out of school, and some are entering from a different career path altogether. Our goal is to show there's no singular path into the industry, and hopefully highlight some ways more people can enter the field.Today's guest is Exton Howard, Security Analyst / Penetration Tester at Dara Security. Exton went from a career directing TV to a new career in cybersecurity. I wanted to dig into how he made the decision and managed the transition to his new career. We talk about his approach to transferable skills, which education resources he took, and his newfound passion for information security.Follow Exton on LinkedIn.

How are the businesses and entrepreneurs building around web3 coping with increased regulatory scrutiny and pressure? And with cryptocurrency being such a target for cybercriminals, how do these relatively small businesses ensure security is in place without impeding business?Today, my guest is David Lopez-Kurtz, founder and CEO of BSL Group, a firm supporting web3 businesses with organization, legal, and compliance services. I wanted to talk to him about where the crypto and web3 business landscape stands after “crypto winter,” and where he sees it heading tomorrow.Follow David on LinkedIn, and on Substack

A lifelong hacker, Katie Moussouris's reputation is legion in cybersecurity. She was the pioneering creator of Microsoft's bug bounty program, as chronicled in Nicole Perloth's bestseller, This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends: The Cyber Weapons Arm Race. She helped the Department of Defense create its first bug bounty program, and previously served as Chief Policy Officer at HackerOne. In this episode, this powerhouse duo touch on:Origins of bug bounty programsTaking a hacker mindset to your careerThe pay equity gapIncreasing reliance on technology that we're having trouble securingFollow Katie Hanahan on LinkedInFollow Katie Moussouris on Twitter, LinkedIn

Imposter syndrome. You've heard about it, people around you have talked about it, indeed if you work in cybersecurity, you've probably lived it. What are the warning signs? More importantly, what can you do about it?Today, my guest is McKenna Yeakey, Sr. Security Engineer at Samsara. I wanted to talk to her about coming to terms with Imposter syndrome, how to counter it, and how to help the next generation of defenders confront it. Follow McKenna on LinkedIn

Kids or career? This is a false choice too often leveled at women, across all industries. So, how to confront this, and what are the skills needed to progress from technical know how to business acumen and then into leadership? Today, my guest is Michelle Tucker, VP of Security Outreach at Huntington National Bank. I wanted to talk to Michelle about what she's learned about choices in her career, and how to cultivate the skills for the next generation of women leaders.

How do you advocate for yourself? In survey after survey, women are seen as “bossy” or “conceited” in the same context where men are seen as “assertive” and “confident.” What's more, while see more women entering the field than ever before, there's a gap emerging in the middle, where the leap to leadership is made. Today, my guest is Jana Moore, CISO at Belron International. I'm joined by Lisa Hayashi, SafeGuard Cyber CMO and founder of the Vision and Voice: Women in Cybersecurity community. We wanted to talk to Jana about what she's learned in her career, and how to cultivate the skills for the next generation of women leaders.

Today's guest is Michaela Vojta, a security awareness and vulnerability management analyst who's just finished the first year in her new job. Michaela started out, as so many of us do, as an avid user of the internet. She honed her OSINT skills and went to school for digital forensics where she discovered cybersecurity. I wanted to learn more about her story. We talk about the role of mentorship, her advice for seeking mentors, and future hopes for her cyber career.Follow Michaela on LinkedIn

When it comes to building resilience, what's the role of community? How do we lift each other up? How do we improve the talent pipeline? Ultimately, how are we collaborating to make systems safer and keep data more secure?Today I'm joined by SafeGuard Cyber CMO, Lisa Hayashi. Our guest is Connie Matthews Reynolds, Founder and CEO of ReynCon and President of the Central Ohio ISSA Chapter. I wanted to talk to her about how she has help build a remarkable and inclusive community of cybersecurity professionals. Warning: This episode contains colorful language.

Rachel went from bodybuilding and managing gyms to becoming a full time mom. When her children decided to attend public school, she went looking for her next chapter, which led her to Fullstack Academy's cybersecurity program. I wanted to learn more about her story, and her hopes for a cyber career.Follow Rachel on LinkedIn

When it comes to succeeding in the workplace, what is the role of culture? How do you know if it's one of cultivation or one that's toxic? And what can you do about it?Today, my guest is Amy Scites, Sr. Engineer for Information Security & Risk at Cardinal Health. I wanted to talk to her about standing up to toxic workplace cultures, and knowing your worth.

With a storied career as a CISO, Richard is also the co-author of “How to Measure Anything in Cybersecurity Risk, with a second edition coming out in April. Ahead of changes to NYDFS and SEC security rules, I wanted to get his take on the implications for the changes and dig in deeper to his approach for measuring risk.Follow Richard: LinkedInPre-order the 2nd edition of How to Measure Anything in Cybersecurity Risk

Today's guest is Crystal Phinn, an aspiring cyber fraud analyst finishing her schooling. Crystal went from art school to -- in her words-- being fully addicted to cybersecurity. I wanted to learn more about her story, and her hopes for a cyber career. She discusses what led her to cyber, how she's Blue Team for life, and the lessons she's learned about trying to break into the industry.

Today's guest is Masha Sedova, President and co-Founder of Elevate Security. I wanted to talk to her about how she confronts these ideas and how she thinks about measuring and mitigating human risk. Follow Masha: LinkedIn, Twitter.

Today's guest is Juliet Okafor, founder and CEO of RevolutionCyber. Juliet, or Jules as she's known to many, got her start in cybersecurity sales, but got there via an interesting route through communications and law school. Along the way, she learned a lot about the value of communicating within organizations when it comes to building security cultures. So much so, in fact, that's she's ventured out to start her own company, RevolutionCyber.You can follow Jules on LinkedIn.

Learn more at Us in TechnologyFollow Kendrick on LinkedIn

Learn more about Black Girls Hack's mission and work.

Today's guest is Laura Lopez, Senior Information Security Associate at Tevora. Laura talks to us about her journey, and how she transitioned from from video editing reality TV in LA to a new career in cybersecurity. I wanted to dig in and get to the details on how she managed that transition.

Hear Amber read from her book and take questions during our Cyber Story Time event on Oct. 12 at 7 pm ET. Or you can find The Little Cyber Engineer on Amazon.

Daniele Lain is the lead author on a paper that caught my eye earlier this year on phishing simulations. What stood out immediately is that it was the largest and longest study of its kind. Instead of a lab or among college students, his study was conducted in collaboration with a Swiss corporation involving more than 14,000 employees over 15 months.The results have serious implications for how we build resilience.You can read the full study here: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2112.07498.pdf

Organized crime syndicates and human trafficking are behind industrial cyberscam operations in South East Asia. The depth and breadth of these operations is devastating and heartbreaking. Even as a cybersecurity vendor, the scale of operations is astonishing. We dig in with Cezary Podkul to learn more about the human cost of these social engineering scams, and to understand that the person on the other end of that scam message might be a victim too.Read the full report here: https://www.propublica.org/article/human-traffickers-force-victims-into-cyberscammingFollow Cezary Podkul's reporting on Twitter: @Cezary

Check out Nicole's blog and children's books on her site: https://threathuntergirl.com/You can order The Mighty Threat Intelligence Warrior on Amazon. And you can find her presentation onCognitive Stairways of Analysis Framework for the 2021 SANS Cyber Threat Intelligence Summit on YouTube.

Today's guest is Mars Groves, an aspiring cybersecurity analyst, who's taken an interesting path into cyber from being a respiratory therapist, volunteer, and writer. Mars is the founder of an up-and-coming writing service Groves Press, and is currently serving both cybersecurity and tech companies as a copy, content, and ghostwriter.He is earning his Bachelor's in Cybersecurity and looks forward to landing an exciting cybersecurity role that allows him to grow in the field. You can find out more at www.marsgroves.com.