Derek Harp is thrilled to have Dale Peterson of Digital Bond joining him for another great episode in the series on security leaders! Dale is a legend and leader in the cyber security industry!

For over 15 years, Dale Peterson has been on the leading/bleeding edge helping security-conscious asset owners effectively and efficiently manage risk to their critical assets. He has pioneered numerous ICS security tools and techniques, such as the first intrusion detection signatures for ICS that are now in every commercial product. In 2007 Dale created the S4 Events to showcase the best offensive and defensive work in ICS security and build a community. S4 is now the largest and most advanced ICS event in the world. Dale is constantly pushing and prodding the ICS community to move faster and get better.

Dale is a catalyst in the ICS cyber security space. He is most famous for his S4 Events. (The latest S4 Event will be coming up between the 19th and 21st of April 2022.) He is also an author, former cryptologist, skier, hiker, outdoorsman, well-known speaker, husband, and father. 

In this episode of the (CS)²AI Podcast, Dale shares his origin story and discusses his career trajectory. He explains what led him to start Digital Bond, he talks about how the S4 Events came about, and he also offers some valuable nuggets of advice for people looking to start a business.

You won’t want to miss this episode if you are looking for ways to get into the cyber security industry or if you want to know which moves to make to become a leader within the industry or start a company of your own. Stay tuned for more!

Show highlights:

• The most interesting and influential work that Dale did early on. (3:10)
• What it takes to produce S4 Events. (4:46)
• Dale first worked on computers when he was in junior high school. (6:06)
• After getting a degree in finance, Dale worked for the NSA as a cryptologist and then went on to work for a company selling military encryption equipment before starting his own company. (8:10) 
• Starting a company is not for everyone. (12:48)
• What led to Dale starting Digital Bond? (13:13)
• Dale shares his biggest failure so that others need not make the same mistake. He also offers advice for anyone wanting to start a business. (16:13)
• How the S4 events came about in 2007. (12:53)
• The highlights and the worst moments Dale remembers from doing S4 events. (30:15)
• You need never be afraid to try something new in your business or career. (32:05)
• Dale talks about where he has helped the most as a mentor. (36:54)
• If you are very good at something, you can quickly make yourself known and become the best in the world at it in new sectors. (38:06)
• Where you can start reading and researching to augment your professional knowledge. (42:39)
• You need to understand your mission when you start a conference or an event. (48:42)

Links:

(CS)²AI

Dale Peterson’s website

Dale Peterson on LinkedIn

Books mentioned:

The Brand You 50 by Tom Peters