CISO Stories Podcast (Audio)

AI is changing cloud security fast, but the biggest challenge is not just adoption. It is governance. In this episode, Jess sits down with Brent Neil, CISO at RapidScale, to talk about what CISOs should be watching as AI becomes embedded in cloud environments, business workflows, and sensitive data systems. Brent shares practical insight on AI governance, identity and access, cloud security controls, and the risks that emerge when ...

In this episode, former FBI cyber leader Jason Manar joins us to unpack the state of critical infrastructure security and why small and medium-sized businesses are more connected to it than they realize. From power, telecom, healthcare, finance, and supply chains, Jason explains how hidden dependencies can turn "not our problem" into a business-stopping event. With his FBI perspective and CISO experience, Jason shares what organiza...

Identity is at the center of nearly every modern breach, but when IAM responsibilities are shared with MSSPs, where does trust end and accountability begin? In this episode of CISO Stories, Jessica Hoffman sits down with Dr. Dustin Sachs to explore the human side of identity and access management, including cognitive bias, automation, privilege creep, and the hidden risks of "blind trust" in real-world security operations.

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In this episode of CISO Stories, Jessica Hoffman speaks with Richard Marcus, CISO at Optro, about how organizations are securing cloud environments at scale. They discuss secure by design principles, infrastructure as code, continuous monitoring, and how GRC and security teams are working together more effectively. The conversation also explores the impact of AI on both defense and the evolving threat landscape, with practical insi...

Threat intelligence too often arrives as a steady stream of alerts that don't translate into clear, timely decisions. This episode explores how public-sector intel flows today through channels like CISA, MS-ISAC, and CIS—and why changes in funding and distribution can reshape what organizations actually receive and when. We also imagine an all-in state approach, where states take a bigger role in getting actionable cyber inte...

CISO Jadee Hanson shares how Vanta "drinks its own champagne," running on NIST CSF with quarterly baseline reviews and using Vanta's GRC platform to turn every release into live UAT for privacy, governance, and compliance. We rethink third-party management—why point-in-time risk scores are fading and how AI drives continuous monitoring and outcome-based assurance. Bottom line: don't just audit—instrument your controls a...

Title: Keys Without People" — John Heasman on Cleaning Up Non-Human Access

Summary: John breaks today's non-human identity mess into three buckets: core tools your business runs on, old/one-off integrations that linger, and engineer tokens left behind. His playbook is simple: decide what's truly critical, assign a clear owner, keep access minimal, and review it on a schedule. With AI spawning even more "non-human users," basi...

This episode was about agentic IAM—what it is and the risks that come with letting non-human agents act for customers. We defined external IAM, then traced how the industry moved from basic login and MFA to consent, delegation, and now agent-to-agent interactions. Along the way we unpacked key risks for CISOs and practitioners to consider.

Segment Resources:

https://www.loginradius.com/

https://customeriambook.com/

CISO Sandy Dunn breaks down her blueprint for AI-ready defense—pairing MITRE ATT&CK v18 with MITRE ATLAS to move from policy to behavior-based detections. We hit practical AI governance, her early focus on defending and understanding AI, and how OWASP GenAI tools turn checklists into action.

Segment Resources: Article: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/attck-v18-atlas-blueprint-ai-ready-defense-sandy-dunn-mafoc 
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Dawn Capelli, Head of OT-CERT at Dragos, unpacks the evolving risks to Operational Technology. From nation-state attacks on Ukraine's infrastructure to hacktivists targeting U.S. water systems, she explains the PIPEDREAM malware, the top five SANS critical OT controls, and how Dragos' OT-CERT program offers free resources to help organizations defend critical infrastructure now.

Segment Resources: https://www.dragos.com/community/

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Kevin Nikkhoo joins the show to explore Security Operations Center as a Service (SOCaaS) and how it compares to traditional SOC models. He breaks down which organizations benefit most from this approach and how AI is reshaping modern SOC operations. Listeners will gain a clear understanding of how SOCaaS can enhance detection and response capabilities—and why embracing AI is key to the future of security operations.

Segment R...

From Diagram to Cloud: Rethinking Cloud Security in an Age of Uncertainty

Episode Summary: In this month's episode of CISO Stories, we dive deep into cloud security with cybersecurity veteran and cloud innovator Yogi Parulekar, founder of InviGrid. Against a backdrop of rising geopolitical tensions and tightening budgets, we explore how organizations can move from reactive security to proactive resilience. Yogi introduces the conce...

In this episode, we explore the crucial role of cultivating a strong security culture to drive change in AppSec, where training and collaboration are key. Our distinguished guest, Danielle Ruderman, discusses the importance of executive support in ensuring that application development isn't just about churning out apps on time, but also about adopting a secure-by-design approach. We also dive into how to empower developers, foster ...

In this episode, Erika Dean dives into the evolution of attack surface management (ASM) in financial tech. From foundational strategies to future-focused threats, she explores how shifts in the fintech landscape demand deeper organizational awareness, ongoing tabletop exercises, and proactive preparation.

This segment is sponsored by Axonius. Visit https://cisostoriespodcast.com/axonius to learn more about them!

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Mandy Andress joins our show to discuss leveraging cyber liability insurance for risk reduction. They explore the importance of strong broker relationships and key steps for selecting or renewing a policy—starting with assessing organizational needs. Learn strategies to lower premiums while increasing coverage.

Segment Resources: https://www.elastic.co/

This segment is sponsored by Sophos. Visit https://cisostoriespodcast.com...

In this episode of the CISO Stories Podcast, we're joined by Mike Miller, a seasoned penetration tester and audit and compliance SME, to explore the real-world impact of incident response controls. From technical to managerial and physical safeguards, Mike shares eye-opening stories from the field—including how he once penetrated a network with nothing more than a dozen doughnuts. We dive into the importance of layered securi...

In this episode, we sit down with author and AI expert Rock Lambros to explore the evolving landscape of AI governance. We discuss the risks of AI chatbots, comparing OpenAI and DeepSeek, and examine current and emerging governance frameworks. As AI adoption accelerates, organizations must determine the right guardrails and critical questions to ask. This conversation provides insights into how companies are shaping their AI strate...

In this episode, we sit down with experienced CISO Gavin Reid to explore the escalating online threats to privacy, focusing on adversaries and companies illicitly scraping website data for profit. We dive into the implications of such unauthorized data collection and its impact on individual and organizational privacy. Reid also shares insights from his team's involvement in dismantling BadBox, a coordinated global attack exploitin...