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AI Makes Security Everyone's Problem—with Tim Olshansky (Fencer)
If AI agents are writing your code, how are you making sure it's secure?
In this episode of Futureproof, Prakash Chandran sits down with Tim Olshansky, CTO and co-founder of Fencer, to explore what application security really looks like in a world where AI writes most of the code and open source software underpins everything. Tim shares his journey from engineer—navigating bureaucratic security processes at larger organizations—to building a platform that makes security accessible for companies under 200 employees. Together, they unpack why compliance certifications often create a false sense of security, how the open source supply chain has become a prime target for attackers, and what "trust but verify" means when Claude is opening your pull requests. They also discuss practical steps any builder can take today—from package manager hygiene to cooldown periods—and why hiring for engineering talent has never been harder to figure out.
Topics covered include:
- Security as hygiene, not a project: Why treating security like brushing your teeth—small, consistent habits—prevents catastrophic outcomes, and why most small companies still skip it.
- The open source supply chain is under attack: How threat actors exploit volunteer-maintained libraries like Axios to gain access to thousands of commercial products at once—and why it's only getting worse.
- AI-generated code and the false sense of security: Why LLMs trained on publicly available code don't encode the highest corporate security standards, and why the code itself may not be what gets you hacked.
- Trust but verify in an AI-first workflow: How Tim's team moved to nearly 100% AI-driven development while still requiring human review.
Episode ID: 19061977-ai-makes-security-everyone-s-problem-with-tim-olshansky-fencer
Subscribe to Futureproof wherever you get your podcasts.
From Xano - The fastest way to create a production-ready backend for any app or agent. Xano unifies AI speed, code control, and visual clarity, so you never trade reliability for velocity. Sign up for free today.
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By Prakash Chandran, CEO & Co-Founder of XanoIf AI agents are writing your code, how are you making sure it's secure?
In this episode of Futureproof, Prakash Chandran sits down with Tim Olshansky, CTO and co-founder of Fencer, to explore what application security really looks like in a world where AI writes most of the code and open source software underpins everything. Tim shares his journey from engineer—navigating bureaucratic security processes at larger organizations—to building a platform that makes security accessible for companies under 200 employees. Together, they unpack why compliance certifications often create a false sense of security, how the open source supply chain has become a prime target for attackers, and what "trust but verify" means when Claude is opening your pull requests. They also discuss practical steps any builder can take today—from package manager hygiene to cooldown periods—and why hiring for engineering talent has never been harder to figure out.
Topics covered include:
- Security as hygiene, not a project: Why treating security like brushing your teeth—small, consistent habits—prevents catastrophic outcomes, and why most small companies still skip it.
- The open source supply chain is under attack: How threat actors exploit volunteer-maintained libraries like Axios to gain access to thousands of commercial products at once—and why it's only getting worse.
- AI-generated code and the false sense of security: Why LLMs trained on publicly available code don't encode the highest corporate security standards, and why the code itself may not be what gets you hacked.
- Trust but verify in an AI-first workflow: How Tim's team moved to nearly 100% AI-driven development while still requiring human review.
Episode ID: 19061977-ai-makes-security-everyone-s-problem-with-tim-olshansky-fencer
Subscribe to Futureproof wherever you get your podcasts.
From Xano - The fastest way to create a production-ready backend for any app or agent. Xano unifies AI speed, code control, and visual clarity, so you never trade reliability for velocity. Sign up for free today.