This special episode of Crossing The Firewall features not one, not two, but four guests! Rutger and Jin return for their second episode, while Thomas and Cassandra join our hosts for their first appearance on the podcast.

In this episode, the team discusses Nation State Cyberattacks, Age Verification Laws, and parenting in the internet age. You wont want to miss this wide ranging discussion!

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Meet our guests!Rutger Leukfeldt is a Professor with Leiden University - https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/staffmembers/rutger-leukfeldt#tab-1

Jin Lee is an alum of the MSU School of Criminal Justice and an Assistant Professor at George Mason University. - https://cls.gmu.edu/people/jlee331

Thomas Dearden is an Assistant Professor at Virginia Tech - https://liberalarts.vt.edu/departments-and-schools/department-of-sociology/faculty/thomas-dearden.html

Cassandra Cross is a Professor at the Queensland University of Technology - https://www.qut.edu.au/about/our-people/academic-profiles/ca.cross

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Interested in learning more about the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation & Training? Visit our website: www.cybertraining.msu.eduAdvance your career with a Masters Degree in Cybercrime and Digital Investigation from the MSU School of Criminal Justice: https://online.cj.msu.edu/ms-masters-cybercrime-digital-investigation----Follow Crossing the Firewall on social media! Find us on BlueSky and Instagram. You can also follow the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation and Training on Facebook and LinkedIn. Crossing the Firewall is hosted by Dr. Tom Holt, Dr. Rachel McNealey, and Dr. Taylor Fisher. Edited by JJ Thomas.

All views and opinions expressed are the views of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of their home institutions or places of work. All information provided in this podcast should not be taken as business, personal, financial, or legal advice.

Dr. Mark Button is a Professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Portsmouth. Dr. Button is also the Director of the Centre for Cybercrime and Economic Crime, which focuses on research, teaching and knowledge services in counter fraud and related issues.Learn more about Dr. Button: https://www.port.ac.uk/about-us/structure-and-governance/our-people/our-staff/mark-buttonLearn more about the Centre: https://www.port.ac.uk/research/research-groups-and-centres/centre-for-cybercrime-and-economic-crime ----Interested in learning more about the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation & Training? Visit our website: www.cybertraining.msu.eduAdvance your career with a Masters Degree in Cybercrime and Digital Investigation from the MSU School of Criminal Justice: https://online.cj.msu.edu/ms-masters-cybercrime-digital-investigation----Follow Crossing the Firewall on social media! Find us on BlueSky and Instagram. You can also follow the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation and Training on LinkedIn and Facebook. Crossing the Firewall is hosted by Dr. Tom Holt, Dr. Rachel McNealey, and Dr. Taylor Fisher. Edited by JJ Thomas. All views and opinions expressed are the views of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of their home institutions or places of work. All information provided in this podcast should not be taken as business, personal, financial, or legal advice.

The phrase "Dark Web" conjures images of shady websites, terrifying realities, and a criminal underground hidden away from the rest of the world.

In some instances, this may be true. However, in most instances, the "Dark Web" is far from what Hollywood portrays.

For example: can you really hire a hitman on the Dark Web? Probably not...those sites tend to be run by scammers or law enforcement agencies.

On the other hand: Can you buy drugs on the Dark Web? Certainly...but you can also buy them on regular social media sites, too.

So, why do some individuals choose to sell through the dark web? How do these markets even form? How are these "businesses" run? Why do these websites look so professional, almost like an Amazon storefront? Dr. Rasmus Munksgaard joins us for this episode of Crossing The Firewall to answer all of your burning questions related to illicit markets on the Dark Web.

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Dr. Rasmus Munksgaard is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology & Social Work at Aalborg University in Denmark. Dr. Munksgaard research focuses on illicit markets both online and offline.

Learn more about Dr. Rasmus Munksgaard: https://vbn.aau.dk/en/persons/ramuan

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Interested in learning more about the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation & Training? Visit our website: www.cybertraining.msu.eduAdvance your career with a Masters Degree in Cybercrime and Digital Investigation from the MSU School of Criminal Justice: https://online.cj.msu.edu/ms-masters-cybercrime-digital-investigation----Follow Crossing the Firewall on social media! Find us on BlueSky and Instagram. You can also follow the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation and Training on LinkedIn. Crossing the Firewall is hosted by Dr. Tom Holt, Dr. Rachel McNealey, and Dr. Taylor Fisher. Edited by JJ Thomas. All views and opinions expressed are the views of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of their home institutions or places of work. All information provided in this podcast should not be taken as business, personal, financial, or legal advice.

Dr. Lisa Sugiura is an Associate Professor at the University of Portsmouth's School of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Dr. Sugiura's research expertise focuses on online gender-based violence and technology-facilitated sexual violence, specifically as it relates to women and girls.

In this episode of Crossing the Firewall, Dr. Sugiura discusses the Incel subculture online and how it impacts relationships among the genders and the overlaps between the digital and physical worlds.

----Interested in learning more about the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation & Training? Visit our website: www.cybertraining.msu.edu

Advance your career with a Masters Degree in Cybercrime and Digital Investigation from the MSU School of Criminal Justice: https://online.cj.msu.edu/ms-masters-cybercrime-digital-investigation

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Follow Crossing the Firewall on social media! Find us on BlueSky and Instagram. You can also follow the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation and Training on LinkedIn.

Crossing the Firewall is hosted by Dr. Tom Holt, Dr. Rachel McNealey, and Dr. Taylor Fisher. Edited by JJ Thomas.

All views and opinions expressed are the views of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of their home institutions or places of work. All information provided in this podcast should not be taken as business, personal, financial, or legal advice.

The key to any good magic trick isn't the prop, it is the deception. To trick the audience into believing what they see and ignore what they don't. Much is the same with hacking, cybercrime...and concerningly cyber terror.Dr. Max Kilger joins the hosts of Crossing The Firewall to discuss how the magic and allure of hacking created the Hacker Community and how that is evolved - and in many ways lost its magic - into cybercrime.As the hacker community evolved into the cybercrime community overtime, something that the Crossing The Firewall hosts blame on the influx of money into the hacking community, and what the cybercrime community may be evolving into next. Dr. Max Kilger: https://business.utsa.edu/faculty/profiles/kilger-max.html----Interested in learning more about the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation & Training? Visit our website: www.cybertraining.msu.eduAdvance your career with a Masters Degree in Cybercrime and Digital Investigation from the MSU School of Criminal Justice: https://online.cj.msu.edu/ms-masters-cybercrime-digital-investigation----Follow Crossing the Firewall on social media! Find us on BlueSky and Instagram. You can also follow the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation and Training on LinkedIn. Crossing the Firewall is hosted by Dr. Tom Holt, Dr. Rachel McNealey, and Dr. Taylor Fisher. Edited by JJ Thomas. All views and opinions expressed are the views of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of their home institutions or places of work. All information provided in this podcast should not be taken as business, personal, financial, or legal advice.

Cybercrime continues to rapidly evolve, with law enforcement and cybersecurity experts racing to stay one step ahead of the latest emerging threats. Business owners and municipality managers often find themselves vulnerable to cyber attacks and are unsure of how best to protect their organizations. Oftentimes, budget constraints, lack of knowledge and training, and staffing limitations mean that cybercrime prevention rank low on the priority level for organizational leadership. None of them want to be victims of a cyber attack, but running an organization takes a lot of time and effort, leaving little time to think of these potential risks. Dr. Tom Hyslip is former law enforcement and an Assistant Professor at the University of South Florida. In this episode, Dr. Hyslip discusses how he got involved in cybercrime prevention and how he now uses his experience in law enforcement to teach students, organizational leaders, and the community on how to protect themselves from becoming the next victim of a cyber attack. ----Interested in learning more about the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation & Training? Visit our website: www.cybertraining.msu.eduAdvance your career with a Masters Degree in Cybercrime and Digital Investigation from the MSU School of Criminal Justice: https://online.cj.msu.edu/ms-masters-cybercrime-digital-investigation----Follow Crossing the Firewall on social media! Find us on BlueSky and Instagram. You can also follow the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation and Training on LinkedIn. Crossing the Firewall is hosted by Dr. Tom Holt, Dr. Rachel McNealey, and Dr. Taylor Fisher. Edited by JJ Thomas. All views and opinions expressed are the views of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of their home institutions or places of work. All information provided in this podcast should not be taken as business, personal, financial, or legal advice.

What does dressing like a janitor, carrying a ladder into a movie theater, and cybercrime all have in common? We can be easily deceived and persuaded into believing just about anything with relative ease.This phenomenon is called Social Engineering. Social Engineering is the use of deception and persuasion to convince individuals to give up information or be used to gain access to areas not generally available to the public.Some instances of Social Engineering may be harmless. You have likely seen the videos on YouTube, Instagram, or TikTok of pranksters carrying a ladder into a movie theater and no one questions them about where they are going or what they are doing. This works because when we see someone with a ladder, we assume they know what they are doing and are going to fix an issue.When we receive an email that we believe is from our boss asking us to move money into a different account or sign certain documents, we may do so without asking any questions. After all, it is our boss. However, some cybercriminals are using Social Engineering to their advantage. Posing as someone of authority and gaining access to private data. In this episode of Crossing the Firewall, Dr. Kevin Steinmetz joins us to discuss Social Engineering and how we can prevent ourselves from falling victim. ---Follow Crossing the Firewall on social media! Find us on BlueSky and Instagram. You can also follow the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation and Training on LinkedIn. Crossing the Firewall is hosted by Dr. Tom Holt, Dr. Rachel McNealey, and Dr. Taylor Fisher. Edited by JJ Thomas. All views and opinions expressed are the views of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of their home institutions or places of work. All information provided in this podcast should not be taken as business, personal, financial, or legal advice.

You're playing Call of Duty mobile, or maybe even Fortnite. You are crushing it, definitely the best you have played in a while...and then the dreaded happens...your internet starts lagging.

Game over.

Nothing is more frustrating than your game lagging, right Think again. In this episode of Crossing the Firewall, we speak with Dr. Asier Moneva to explore the murky waters where online gaming and cybercrime meet.

From DDoS attacks, "Booting," and beyond. We discuss how online gaming has become fertile grounds for digital mischief - and sometimes criminal careers.

Whether you're a gamer yourself, a parent, law enforcement, or are just curious about the dark side of the internet, this episode is for you.

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Follow Crossing the Firewall on social media! Find us on BlueSky and Instagram. You can also follow the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation and Training on LinkedIn.

Crossing the Firewall is hosted by Dr. Tom Holt, Dr. Rachel McNealey, and Dr. Taylor Fisher. Edited by JJ Thomas.

All views and opinions expressed are the views of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of their home institutions or places of work. All information provided in this podcast should not be taken as business, personal, financial, or legal advice.

How do we teach cybersecurity practitioners? How do we define cybersecurity education?

We dive deep into why cybersecurity isn't just technical—it’s cultural, and why building hackers means building communities. From chaotic summer camps and Discord-powered learning hubs to the dangers of Cocomelon and algorithmic media, this episode tackles how education must evolve to meet a digital world that’s moving fast.

Our guest, Dr. Nathan Fisk, is an Assistant Professor at the University of South Florida and Community and Outreach Liaison for Cyber Florida.

Whether you're a parent, educator, student, or just a curious mind—this one’s for you. Hit play, embrace the chaos, and let’s reimagine what cybersecurity education should look like.

You click the link in the email you received. It seems legit - from a former co-worker - you're just going to sign the documents and then get back to your day.

Your computer shuts down. You can't click on the pop-up that is now covering your entire screen. It says that you have to pay $1,000 to unlock your computer, only payable in Bitcoin. You have until the end of the week.

You realize you fell victim to a ransomware attack. Who would do this? Why would someone do this?

You're not alone in asking why. It is one of the fundamental question of criminologists and cybercrime researchers.

In this episode of Crossing the Firewall, we get inside the mind of hackers and cybercriminals with Dr. Rutger Leukfeldt. As one of the leading cybercrime researchers in the world, Rutger regularly works with the public to help us understand the motivations of hackers and how to protect ourselves from potential attacks.

Dr. Leukfeldt is a Professor at the Hague University of Applied Sciences (The Netherlands). His research primarily focuses on the human element of cybercrime, specifically the motivations and connections of hackers.

Follow Crossing the Firewall on social media! Find us on BlueSky and Instagram. You can also follow the MSU Center for Cybercrime Investigation and Training on LinkedIn.

Crossing the Firewall is hosted by Dr. Tom Holt, Dr. Rachel McNealey, and Dr. Taylor Fisher. Edited by JJ Thomas.

All views and opinions expressed are the views of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of their home institutions or places of work. All information provided in this podcast should not be taken as business, personal, financial, or legal advice.