The Virtual CISO Moment

Joshua Copeland is a seasoned cybersecurity professional and educator with 25 years of experience, with a focus on holistic cloud and on-prem security approaches and specific expertise in building and operating security stacks, SOC operations, and cybersecurity governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) processes. Additionally, he served 20 years in the US Air Force. Also, since 2021 he has been the purveyor of #unpopularopinions as the "Unpopular Opinion Guy" SM or "UOG" on LinkedIn, covering topics like hiring, mentoring, and cybersecurity.

Troy Bowman is an Information Security Analyst for Costco Wholesale, specializing in application security. He is also a Navy veteran and has some excellent advice on those looking to enter cyber from military service. He also relays one of the most unique way I have heard to decompress with stress!

Evan Francen is the CEO of FRSecure and SecurityStudio. His mantra of focusing on the mission is inspiring, and his mission is to, simply put, fix problems. He is the founder of the CISSP Mentor Program and the Certified vCISO (CvCISO) training. Additionally, he authored The Information Security Industry is Broken (June 2018). The industry may be broken, but we can fix it; that's just one of the topics we discuss.

Richea Perry is a seasoned GRC and Cybersecurity Professional with an unwavering passion for securing today's digital environments. Throughout his journey, he has been at the forefront of shaping resilient network infrastructures, robust Governance, Risk Management, and Compliance strategies that are not just benchmarks, but catalysts for business growth. We discuss AI risks for SMBs, GRC (of course), and his career path from IT (networking) to cybersecurity. He is also the host of the CyberJA podcast - and I finally learned what the JA means! Hint - I definitely overthought it.

Stanley Charles is the Founder of the Charles Technology Group and Senior Manager, Information Security and Compliance at Pixel United. I realized early in the discussion that we have similar career paths, from aircraft maintenance in the United States Air Force, to an early career in networking as a network engineer, to eventually land in the information security and cybersecurity space. We cover a lot of ground in this episode, including advising SMBs on how to get the most out of their relationship with their MSP/MSSP.

Nick Mullen is the Founder and Principal Consultant at Sanguine Security Solutions and is also a Cybersecurity Program Mentor at Kennesaw State University. He is a technology leader dedicated to enabling teams and facilitating achievement, and his expertise is in program/project management, information security, IT governance, and compliance in the financial services sector. In this special midweek episode, we talk security plus Star Trek - a great combination!

Robert Hill is a visionary leader with over three decades of expertise in the cybersecurity industry. As the founder and CEO of Cyturus Technologies, Inc, a leading Compliance and Risk Management solution provider, Robert has played an instrumental role in shaping the landscape of cybersecurity and helping organizations, navigate the complex challenges of a digital era.

Prior to founding Cyturus, Robert held positions within various consulting firms, where he honed his skills by collaborating closely with Fortune 500 companies to develop cybersecurity strategies. His hands-on experience in identifying deficiencies, mitigating risks, and implementing robust compliance frameworks has proven instrumental in fostering a culture of security awareness among clients.

Nick Oles is an author, cybersecurity professional, and veteran. We cover many topics including his book How to Catch a Phish (available at https://lnkd.in/e35B8YHz) and career paths, including this preview where he reviews his beginnings in IT in college. I often say that working at a university is a great place to get foundational IT experience, and he is a great example.

Jonathan Mandell calls Chicago home and has worked across various tech roles, from Enterprise AE to Business Development. He was part of the founding team of Tiz, which later became Provi, a SaaS company reshaping the alcohol industry. He has worked in third party risk management (TPRM) for the past 5 years, and recently founded Teepee, a cybersecurity firm delivering solutions in the area of TPRM. Join us as we discuss the challenges and benefits for SMBs in ensuring effective third party risk management.

For more information, check out Teepee at https://teepeesafe.com/.