In this episode of Cyber Focus, host Frank Cilluffo sits down with Phil Venables, Chief Information Security Officer for Google Cloud. They discuss Venables' work co-leading the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology's report on cyber-physical resilience, and its key recommendations including creating a national critical infrastructure observatory. The conversation also covers Google's focus on secure-by-design and secure-by-default, the implications of AI/generative AI for cybersecurity, and the evolving role of the CISO as more of a chief risk officer.

Main Topics Covered President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology Report to the President on Strategy for Cyber-Physical Resilience

Creating a national critical infrastructure observatory

Secure by design and secure by default at Google

Implications of AI/generative AI for cybersecurity defenders

Evolution of the CISO role to be more like a chief risk officer

Current cyber threat landscape and basic defenses still needed

Public-private partnership between tech companies and government

Quotes "It's not just about security, privacy, or compliance. It's about trust and safety… The bold but responsible use of AI." - Venables on ethical AI concerns

"We have much more heavily engaged with our government partners, not just here in the US, but around the world, because we recognize our position in supporting critical infrastructures." - Venables on Google's public-private partnerships.

"[Executives] also need to make sure that there's the resources in the ranks in their organizations to get security done." - Venables on executive support for security

"...implementing strong phishing resistant multi-factor authentication, keeping systems up to date, segmenting and all the basic hygiene...when you do it, you mitigate a whole bunch of risks." - Venables on basic cyber hygiene defenses

Resources

President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology report on cyber-physical systems - Press Release, Executive Summary, Full Report

Google's Secure AI Framework (SAIF)

Secure By Design

Secure By Default

Bio Phil Venables is the Chief Information Security Officer for Google Cloud. Prior to Google, he spent 20 years at Goldman Sachs as CISO and Chief Operational Risk Officer, establishing the firm as a cybersecurity leader. Venables co-led the President's Council report on enhancing cyber-physical resilience of critical infrastructure, recommending a national infrastructure observatory. He has co-founded multiple financial sector cybersecurity initiatives and served on boards for NIST, NYU, NSA, and others. Widely recognized for his leadership, Venables has received the RSA Conference Award, FS-ISAC Critical Infrastructure Award, and other top honors. With over 25 years of cross-disciplinary experience across finance, technology and risk management, he brings a unique perspective to Google Cloud's security efforts.